6&U  -   Participation in this age group is open to all girls that will be 5 or 6 years old before 1/1/12.   Softball at this age group is purely instructional, introducing the girls to the basic concepts of fielding, throwing, and hitting a softball. The only ball used for this age group is an 11" "softie" softball.   Girls are only required to supply their own softball glove (and a willingness to have fun).   Other age appropriate equipment such as balls, bats, batting tees, etc... will be supplied by HYA.   Practices and games are held once per week during the week on a day to be determined after registration, typically starting around 5:30 PM.   During practices and games, the girls will only hit off of batting tees (no player or coach pitching) so that they may learn proper hitting techniques without the fear of getting hit by a pitch.   Depending upon the number of girls registered to play in this age group, games may be played against other non-Hempfield teams.  

Please contact Kym Kelley with any questions about this program.

8&U  -   Participation in this age group is open to all girls that will be 7 or 8 years old before 1/1/12.   Softball at this age group is purely instructional, introducing the girls to the basic concepts of fielding, throwing, and hitting a softball. The only ball used for this age group is an 11" "softie" softball.   Girls are only required to supply their own softball glove (and a willingness to have fun).   Other age appropriate equipment such as balls, bats, batting tees, etc... will be supplied by HYA.   Practices and games are held once per week during the week on a day to be determined after registration, typically starting around 5:30 PM.   During practices, the girls will be introduced to coach pitching with batting tees still being used instructionally.  Games will be coach pitched with use of batting tees after player misses four pitches.   Depending upon the number of girls registered to play in this age group, games may be played against other non-Hempfield teams.  

Please contact Kym Kelley with any questions about this program.

10&U  -   Participation in this age group is open to all girls that will be 9 or 10 years old before 1/1/12.   Softball at this age group starts to get more competitive as team records and standings are kept, and playoffs are held at the end of the season.   Hitting now becomes more of a challenge as the girls will now face player pitching.   Pitchers will be pitching from 35 feet, and since there are no walks, when ball four is thrown, the batter will hit off of a tee.   This rule also allows the pitchers to get used to pitching period, and to work on pitching mechanics without the fear of walking all batters.   Other situations that will be introduced at this age level include base stealing, tagging on fly balls, and playing with an actual softball.   The ball used for this age group will still be an 11" ball, but it will be a regular, hard softball.   Girls are only required to supply their own softball glove (and a willingness to have fun).   A mouth guard is also recommended.   Softball cleats are optional - no metal spikes are allowed.   Other age appropriate equipment such as balls, bats, batting tees, batting helmets, catching equipment, etc... will be supplied by HYA.   Practices and games are held twice per week during the week on days to be determined after registration, typically starting around 5:30 PM - usually Tuesdays & Thursdays.   A weekend practice may be held at the discretion of the head coach.

Please contact Kym Kelley with any questions about this program.

12&U  -   Participation in this age group is open to all girls that will be 11 or 12 years old before 1/1/12.   Starting at this age group, the skill levels of the girls start to vary a great deal, and in order to continue to allow all players to have a positive softball experience, teams are separated into "divisions" - "A" and "B" - so that girls are playing against/with girls/teams of similar skill sets.   Team records and standings are kept, and playoffs are held at the end of the season.   At this age group, pitching now becomes more of a challenge as a bigger ball is used - 12" - and the pitching distance is moved to 40 feet.   Batters are also now allowed to walk - no more hitting off of tees.   Other situations that will now be introduced at this age level include multiple base stealing, base advancement on passed balls, stealing home, dropped 3rd strike, and infield fly rule.   The ball used for this age group will be a 12", regulation softball.   Girls are only required to supply their own softball glove (and a willingness to have fun).   A mouth guard is highly recommended and encouraged for this age group.   Softball cleats are optional - no metal spikes are allowed.   Other age appropriate equipment such as balls, bats, batting helmets, catching equipment, etc... will be supplied by HYA.   Practices and games are held twice per week during the week on days to be determined after registration, typically starting around 5:30 PM - usually Monday, Wednesday, & Fridays. A weekend practice may be held at the discretion of the head coach.

Please contact Kym Kelley with any questions about this program.

14&U  -   Participation in this age group is open to all girls that will be 13 or 14 years old before 1/1/12.   This age group is a continuation from the 12&U age group.   At this age group, the skill levels of the girls start to vary even more than at 12&U, so again, in order to continue to allow all players to have a positive softball experience, teams are separated into "divisions" - "A" and "B" - so that girls are playing against/with girls/teams of similar skill sets. Team records and standings are kept, and playoffs are held at the end of the season.   At this age group, like at 12&U, the 12" regulation softball is used and the pitching distance is 40 feet.   The same hitting and playing rules apply to this age group as used at the 12&U age group.   Girls are only required to supply their own softball glove (and a willingness to have fun).   A mouth guard is highly recommended and encouraged for this age group.   Softball cleats are optional - no metal spikes are allowed.   Other age appropriate equipment such as balls, bats, batting helmets, catching equipment, etc... will be supplied by HYA.   Practices and games are held twice per week during the week on days to be determined after registration, typically starting around 5:30 PM - usually Tuesdays & Thursdays. A weekend practice may be held at the discretion of the head coach.

Please contact Kym Kelley with any questions about this program.