Let's Play 2 (or 3, or 4)
February 16, 2012
A few conversations I had at last week's Women In Sports Leadership conference further affirmed a point I've been making for years -- high school athletes, if they'd like, shouldn't hesitate to play multiple sports.
Doing so does not hurt, but might just help their chances at landing that prized college scholarship -- on top of adding another layer to the high school sports experience.
Reaffirming this for me last week was Michigan State softball coach Jacquie Joseph, who spoke on that subject at the WISL conference. She's heading into her 24th season as a head coach at the Division I college level -- so she's been around for some of the evolution of both high school sports specialization and college recruiting. Plus, she coaches a sport that sees its share of athletes playing just that one.
Later, I spoke with a high school coach who leads teams in three sports and also played one at the Division I college level. She's a believer in this as well.
Some of the things I've been told over the years about playing more than one sport:
- It allows an athlete to learn more skills and hone more parts of his or her athleticism.
- Using another range of movement further helps condition an athlete's body and make it more resistant to injury.
- It's hardly rare to see a college football coach watching a prospect's basketball game -- coaches like to see how athleticism transfers across sports, and sometimes will see something from an athlete playing basketball that he didn't show on the football field. (Football and basketball are used in this example, but the same applies to a number of similar situations.)
- Athletes get an opportunity to play whatever they'd like only this once (unless they turn out to be that rare college athlete who takes on more than one sport at that level).
These are hardly new arguments. But they are always worth repeating -- especially when the people frequently making them (college coaches) are the ones single-sport athletes often are trying to impress.
Today in the MHSAA: 6/12/24
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 12, 2024
1. SOFTBALL Gretchen Weiland no-hit No. 9 Hancock over six innings of a 12-0 Division 4 Quarterfinal victory for No. 7 Hillman – Alpena News
2. SOFTBALL Megan Beemer hit three home runs to lead No. 2 Hudsonville past honorable mention Midland in Division 1 4-3 – Grand Rapids Press
3. SOFTBALL Top-ranked Unionville-Sebewaing will play for a fifth-straight Division 4 title after a 2-0 Quarterfinal win over No. 4 Plymouth Christian Academy – Huron Daily Tribune
4. SOFTBALL Kaitlyn Pallozzi struck out 19 as top-ranked Farmington Hills Mercy downed No. 7 Allen Park 3-0 in Division 1 – Detroit News
5. GIRLS SOCCER No. 6 Kalamazoo Christian downed No. 7 Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian 2-1 in a Division 4 Semifinal – WWMT
6. SOFTBALL No. 4 Vicksburg is headed back to the Division 2 Semifinals thanks to a 7-1 win over No. 2 Hudsonville Unity Christian – Kalamazoo Gazette
7. SOFTBALL Rylee Limberger’s homer sent No. 10 Lake Orion past White Lake Lakeland 9-7 in Division 1 – Oakland Press
8. SOFTBALL No. 3 South Lyon will return to the Division 1 Semifinals thanks to a 6-0 win over honorable mention Hartland – Hometown Life
9. SOFTBALL No. 8 Clare advanced in Division 3 with a 5-0 win over honorable mention New Lothrop – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
10. SOFTBALL No. 3 Buchanan also moved on in Division 3 with a 3-1 win over No. 5 Ravenna – Niles Daily Star
Also of note …
GIRLS SOCCER No. 6 Rochester Adams edged Salem 2-1 to advance to the Division 1 Final – Oakland Press
SOFTBALL No. 5 Holton is headed to the Division 4 Semifinals after a 12-9 win over No. 8 Beal City – CatchMark SportsNet
GIRLS SOCCER Jackson Lumen Christi advanced in Division 4 with a 3-1 win over No. 8 Auburn Hills Oakland Christian – Jackson Citizen Patriot
GIRLS SOCCER No. 11 Hartland earned a trip to East Lansing in Division 1 with a 2-1 Semifinal win over Grand Haven – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
SOFTBALL North Branch got off to a fast start in an 8-1 Division 1 Quarterfinal win over St. Clair – WJRT
SOFTBALL No. 4 Evart moved on in Division 3 with a 9-0 win over honorable mention Gladstone – Cadillac News
SOFTBALL Last season’s Division 4 runner-up and current No. 3 Mendon will play to reach the Final again after a 12-0 win over Dansville – Sturgis Journal
SOFTBALL Reigning champion and top-ranked Gaylord advanced in Division 2 with an 18-1 win over honorable mention Muskegon Oakridge – Petoskey News-Review
SOFTBALL Milan in Division 2 and Ottawa Lake Whiteford in Division 3 earned Semifinal berths; they are honorable mentions in their respective divisions – Monroe News