Hello everyone. Just wanted all softball players to go to my softball group and join. I also want everyone to download your pics on this group page. I would like to see how many pics we can put on there.

Hello everyone, sorry it has been so long since I wrote on this blog, but I have been very busy working on our field and doing some clinics. I also have been gathering some autographed memorabilia from softball players to raise money for our local Lions Club. I have had a good response from people like Michelle Smith, Cat Osterman, Lisa Fernandez, Jennie Finch. Also, from a young lady by the name of Kristina Thorson. Kristina helped the Chicago Bandits win the Pro Fastpitch League. Kristina is a very good pitcher that also played for the California Bears in college. I remember watching Kristina on tv playing in the college world series. I am leaving in the morning and heading to Ashland, Kentucky, where I am going to meet up with Kristina. Kristina is giving me some autographed memorabiliaby her and the whole Chicago Bandits team for the Lions Club. She is having a pitching clinic in Ashland tomorrow. I am going to watch her clinic to learn more about pitching. Kristina has also told me that she would come here to Cynthiana to do a clinic also. Its people like Kristina that makes the game special. When I asked her if she would like to help out with raising money for the Lions Club, without hesitation, she said yes. Athletes that really care about other people and not just the game, really touches me. I would like to thank Kristina, C. Osterman, J.Finch, M. Smith, and L. Fernandez for their kindness. Please visit Kristina's website at www.kthorson.com.

Now that softball is over for most of us, Its time for the off-season workouts. We are getting ready for our conditioning program. The program that we use is a tough one. We had several girls, last year, lose over 12 pounds. Some of those girls use the program all year long. Also this is a time for you to really concentrate on correcting problems you may have had during season. The off-season an important time for pitchers. You can work on form, work on speed, and this is the perfect time to work on new pitches. The off-season allows you to really concentrate on all phases of pitching, without the game pressure. But dont get me wrong, this is a crucial time for you. You need to worrk extra hard. It doesnt do you any good to just go through the motions. Work to develop the muscle memory, work to pitch to location, work to gain speed, work to develop new pitches, etc. You need to push yourself. Set a goal that you are going to be better than the day before. Good luck to everyone in their off-season workouts. Id like to hear from you all and let me know how your workouts are going. I would also like to hear what kind of workouts you are doing. I am always looking to learn new things, and maybe you all can help me do that. Here is my email addy: rwcoppage@setel.com

My daughter, who is going to be an 8th grader, plays for a travel team I coach. Today, she hit her first homerun. What a Feeling, especially when I was coaching 3rd base. She hit a shot over the fence in left center field. The fence was 200 ft. The ball went at least 25-30 ft. beyond the fence. It takes alot for me to be emotional, but I had tears in my eyes. This is what makes me coach, special moments like this. I'm sure alot of you coaches and dads have had the same feeling. If you haven't had this feeling yet, it really is something to look forward to.

For those of you asking questions about what you need to do to play college softball, email me at rwcoppage@setel.com

As I sat and watched this years womens college world series, it brought back so many memories. My daughter and I went to the 2006 college world series, where we met alot of college softballs best players. We met Cat, Megan Willis, Caitlin Lowe, etc. Megan Willis and I are good friends. All of these young ladies took time from their busy schedule to talk to me. These young ladies took pictures with alot of girls. But as I watched Katie Burkhart and the Arizona State Sundevils win this years college world series, it reminded me how amazing the experience really was. What I mean by this is that Katie Burkhart took extra time to talk with me and my daughter. My daughter also took pictures with Katie, These pictures didnt turn out too good. Katie suggested that we go somewhere else at Hall of Fame Stadium and retake the pics. WOW! How many other players do you think would have done that. All of the Arizona St. players were like that. So,Katie and the rest of the Arizona St. softball team, Thank You.It was a little thing like this that made me a fan. This is why Im so glad that they won this years college world series. Also, Taryne Mowatt is pretty special too. Taryne signed some photos at her home and mailed them to me. Arizona sofball lost another great pitcher. But, the future looks bright for Taryne. This is just a couple of the many highlights that we had at the college world series. If you ever get the chance to go to the womens college world series, I promise it will be an AMAZING EXPERIENCE!

I am a hitting for our high school. A couple of years ago I changed the way I teach the art of hitting. I now teach it the same way as Mike Candrea does. Balance in the stance and maintain balance after the swing. Here is the order of progression for hitting: 1. Dry Swings 2. Tee Drills 3. Side Toss 4. Cage Hitting with Pitching Machine 5. Live Batting Practice It is important to go by these. This is how our players develop muscle memory. I see people all the time just do a couple of these.When training someone, you need to start from scratch. An example of this is doing dry swings. People think this is silly, but this is where you can really critique your hitter. During dry swings the hitter can really focus on the technique because they dont have to focus on the ball like you do in the other drills. I use this order of progression on my high school team. I have great results from this. This year was my first year back coaching, I took some time off. We broke several offensive records this year. I hope this shows you the importance of progressionary hitting and I hope it helps you.

Just got back from a Freshman Softball Tourney. Our team has made so much progress, I cant tell you how proud of them I am. My daughter, Ashley, who is a seventh grader, pitched the game of her life today. We played a team today that beat us twice earlier this year. They beat us 17-2 and 16-3. They were the favorite to win the tourney. Ashley really hit her location today. She also had her change up working. She has a nasty change up. She kept the hitters off balance all day.We won this game, but more importantly gave them confidence. Ashley also had several big hits. She amazes me on how good she is as a seventh grader. I just want her to know that I am proud to be her coach, but more importantly, her DAD.