An Inside Look at NFCA Coaches Clinics

An Inside Look at NFCA Coaches Clinics Mike Candrea speaks at a 2022 Coaches Clinic.
What is an NFCA Coaches Clinic? Coach, your player's off-season is your time to be in-season - in the classroom, learning new drills, new philosophies, and making connections to enhance your softball coaching skills. The NFCA is inviting YOU, whether you're a new softball coach or seasoned veteran, to come learn from the top coaches in our game at ...
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Beyond-the-Fence of Softball Rankings

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma has found itself in - and mainly at the top of - the USA Today/NFCA's Division I Top 25 Poll for several years.
College & High School Softball Rankings Softball rankings, or polls, are a pivotal part of the softball landscape. Polls generate excitement around our game and bring interest to the sport, match-ups and highlighted programs along the way. Although polls are important and have a place in sport, they are not the only item used in determining cha...
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How to Coach Softball

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 Becoming a Softball Coach Becoming a softball coach starts with three simple items: 1) a basic knowledge of fastpitch softball 2) a desire to teach and inspire through effective communication and 3) a commitment to leading your team to the best of your ability. Building a positive culture and relationships with individual ...
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Softball Holiday Gift Guide

Softball Holiday Gift Guide
Softball Coach Gifts Shopping for the softball coach in your family this holiday season? Let us help! If there's one thing softball coaches love, it's more softball! We have gifting options starting at just $5, and any of these options are sure to put a smile on your coach's face. Digital Downloads Sometimes making it to an in-person learning ...
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The Greatest Time of Year ... Convention!

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The NFCA Convention

There's no denying the NFCA Convention is a special event. Coaches from all divisions, all over the world, meet in one place to talk softball, network and grow. There's no better experience than being in the same location - for four full days - with thousands of your colleagues. If you've never been to Convention, we're going to try and give you a glimpse of the magic, and if you've been before, hopefully this re-ignites your fire to join us again (and again, and again).

One of the NFCA's newest team members, Director of Innovation, Lyndsey Talbot, is going to share her perspective having recently made the transition from attendee to NFCA staff. Come along!

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Our Unsung Hero

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Who am I?

Favorite book: 'Oh the Places You'll Go' - Dr. Seuss

Favorite song: 'On the Road Again' -Willie Nelson

Favorite shape: Square

Favorite logo: NFCA logo

Favorite hobby: Travel

Favorite beverage: Gatorade

Things I hear: Lots of loud noises and lots of laughter

Things I see: Lots of people who like softball and beautiful parts of the country

Things I smell: Snacks and gasoline

Recent travel: Atlanta, Chicago, Nashville … but my favorite is Las Vegas

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The NFCA's Top 5 Softball Drills

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We have all been there, your first softball coaching job, a new position, new team, start of a season, all the above ... what is one of the first things you do? Google softball drills, of course! It doesn't matter how long I've been coaching it always seems to be one of the first things I look for when building my practice plans. I've got year...
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NFCA sure has grown in last dozen years

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Hi! My name is Jamie Hazel-White. As the longest current NFCA staff member — I was hired in August 2010 — I've seen quite a few changes over my nearly dozen years on the team. I actually started fresh out of college as the Membership and Convention Coordinator and held a few other titles along the way, before ending up in my current position as the...
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The Team Behind the Team

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Coaches; you and your players receive a great deal of attention, recognition, and credit throughout the year. When a student-athlete blasts a game-winning RBI, they get the credit. When you earn a milestone victory, you get the credit. When your team earns the highest department GPA, they get the credit. Administrators, fans, and the media are all ...
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2573 Hits

Classified and Classy - Inside the NFCA HOF

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Read this for an intimate inside look at the NFCA Hall of Fame process. Pictures you've never seen. Information you never knew. And stories you've never heard. Let's go! What is it? Immortality. Kidding. But kinda… The Hall of Fame Award is the most prestigious award given by the NFCA. The NFCA inducts members into its Hall of Fame each December at...
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2823 Hits

All About All-American

All About All-American
Konnichiwa! This is Paula Blumenschein, Director of Membership here. Awards season is back baby! It's so nice to hear the excitement in our member coach's voices as I assist with membership renewals, school/position updates, and password resets (if in doubt try 'softball')! Throughout the year NFCA members enjoy many benefits including access to ho...
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Women's History Month great time to reflect on softball's rich history

Women's History Month great time to reflect on softball's rich history

MARCH IS Women's History Month, and as we celebrate women's contributions to history, culture and society at a national level, what better time to honor those closer to home – the players, coaches and administrators whose efforts have elevated women's fastpitch softball to the extraordinary heights we enjoy today.

When I worked for the NFCA, we had the privilege of publishing a history of women's fastpitch softball written by former Arizona State head coach Mary Littlewood. Mary, who founded the softball program at ASU, coached fastpitch at the school, as well as other sports, from 1967 through 1989. After her college coaching days were over, she came to the NFCA with manuscript in hand, in addition to more than 200 photographs and illustrations to complement her written word. It was an amazing compilation, and all we had to do was put it together in book form and publish it, which we did in 1998. As I reminisce now on our sport's history, Mary's book, "Women's Fastpitch Softball – The Path to the Gold", serves as the backbone to many of these observations.

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The 'Head Coaches' of the NFCA

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Welcome to "Beyond the Fence," our blog offering a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of the NFCA. I got the nod to be a pinch hitter, well pinch blogger, this month. And in the words of one of my favorite songs from the musical Hamilton, I am not throwing away my shot! As you know, the NFCA is a membership organization made up ...
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Going behind-the-scenes at the NFCA Virtual Convention

Going behind-the-scenes at the NFCA Virtual Convention

WHEN YOU take on a project that you've never done before, there's A LOT of uncertainty. Can we pull it off? What do we need to know to make it happen? How do we entice people to join us?

COVID-19 changed our world nine months ago by canceling so many softball seasons and giving coaches some unexpected (and unwanted) time off. Even with a vaccine arriving, it is expected to continue to affect our everyday existence well into 2021.

After the initial shock, we at the NFCA quickly decided it needed to pivot to online learning, not only to keep providing coaches with educational opportunities, but also to provide a place to gather and have a much-needed break from the worries brought on by the pandemic.

We all got very familiar — too familiar, possibly — with Zoom calls in 2020. But what would we have done WITHOUT Zoom calls? For those of us stuck at home for months at a time, Zoom gave us a chance to interact with our friends and colleagues, and really save our sanity in a very uncertain time.

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3087 Hits

Going behind the glitz and glamour of NFCA awards

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Hi All! This is Annie Gordon, the Director of Outreach & Creative Design for the NFCA. This is my first blog post and it's one near and dear to my heart (and my job description) … Awards and Scholarships!  Chances are if you're an NFCA member, you've been involved in some sort of NFCA award – whether that's a Victory Club 100-win mark, the...
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3427 Hits

We’ve come a long way! Stories of struggles and successes

We’ve come a long way! Stories of struggles and successes

Dave Hines here. You may know me as the NFCA's Director of Publications or as the Association's Division III liaison. This is my first swing at writing a blog — and I'm much more familiar writing news stories and features — but it's not about me. It's about the people who created and developed our Association and fastpitch softball. You won't believe how they did it.  

FROM SHARED CONVENTIONS, to Title IX struggles, to getting exposure as an Olympic sport that led to the growth and popularity softball enjoys today, we've come a long way.

NFCA Hall of Famers Judi Garman and Marge Willadsen joined NFCA Emeriti Board rep Sheilah Gulas (also a Hall of Famer) and former NFCA Executive Director Kim Vance for a recent conversation to tell some stories and talk about the evolution of the Association.

They were some of the key people on the front lines fighting for equality for women's athletics as Title IX legislation came into play in the 1970s. They experienced the transition from the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) to the NCAA first-hand, and even played a role in getting softball into the Olympics.

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NFCA Hall of Famers on Having a Voice, Convention and Yellow Softballs

Sheilah-Gulas-NFCA-Hall-Of-Fame-White-Softball

The history of the NFCA.

Where do we even begin?

For starters, if you've never read the "History of the NFCA" section on our website – I'll be honest, I just read it writing this blog – you'll learn things like "the idea for a softball coaching association first developed from discussions at the National Collegiate Women's Softball Championships in the early 1980's, with Judy Martino of the University of North Carolina credited with the initial thought."  See, worth it! Come on, I can probably guarantee if you're under 35 you didn't know that fun fact.

In working for the NFCA over the last six years, I've been fortunate to be submerged in the history of our game on a regular basis: Hall of Fame membersHall of Fame members like Dianne Baker (longtime NFCA official sponsor), Sheilah Gulas (emeriti Board rep), and Mike Candrea (NCAA Division I all-time wins leader) are all avid - and active - supporters of the Association. And during my time at Northwestern, current NFCA Board President Kate Drohan made sure Sharon Drysdale's legacy was engrained in our program every step of the way – even years after she retired. Speaking of, did you know Sharon Drysdale wrote the original NCAA softball rule book?! But there are many young coaches who probably couldn't spot Drysdale - or even Joan Joyce out of a lineup - and every single person I just named were all in Atlantic City at Convention last December!

So alas, pull up a chair, folks! Every now and then a few of these blog posts are going to be dedicated to our emeriti members, NFCA Hall of Famers and other coaching legends who have helped build, shape and mold not only this Association, but our sport and women's athletics in general. Let's get started!

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4236 Hits

How the NFCA Picks a Convention Hotel

NFCA-2019-Site-Visit-Atlantic-City Meeting of the minds

Rise and shine, and welcome back to Beyond the Fence

If you know anything about the NFCA National ConventionNFCA National Convention, I'm sure you can imagine it takes juuust a bit of planning. Have you ever wondered just how much planning it really takes though? How about just the length of the process in choosing a hotel per se - before we even get to the Convention itself? Well, let's dive in! 

Before COVID-19COVID-19 hit the United States, several members of our staff flew to Dallas, Texas, for a "pre-planning" visit. This means a full-day of "plugging and chugging" our Convention schedule into the hotel's space. This particular visit happens nine months before our Convention even takes place - our third trip to the hotel already - but I'll come back to this moment in time.

Before we start, it's important to walk you through selecting a potential Convention location because let's be honest, if our staff had a dollar for every time we hear

We should have Convention in *insert random city/hotel here* ... 

by Everyone
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5967 Hits

Welcome to the NFCA's First-Ever Blog

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We're going Beyond the Fence. You'll be surprised by the view.

Emily Allard here.Emily Allard here. I am the Director of Marketing and Sponsorships at the NFCA. In short, I work alongside the companies investing in softball and love to figure out how they can fit best within our Association, impact our members and amplify our sport on a daily basis. I also assist the NFCA staff in marketing our major events and sponsored items, in addition to running the Exhibit Show at ConventionExhibit Show at Convention each year. As we like to joke around the office, the above items listed are only the main things I tackle outside of "other duties as assigned," which for me also include, "Hey Em, can you come reach this thing off the top shelf for me?" I'm lucky to be surrounded by the most down-to-earth team, led by a tireless leader, but you're probably wondering why in the world you are even reading this right now. 

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3999 Hits

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