MAY 30th PARENT MEETING & JUNE 2, 4, and 6th OPEN TRAVEL TEAM PRACTICES

We are extending an open invitation to ALL YOUTH SOFTBALL PLAYERS ages 9 thru 18 to come check out the MAD RIVER - HUMBOLDT FASTPITCH SOFTBALL TRAVEL PROGRAM.  Information about this exciting and rapidly expanding girls fastpitch softball program will be shared at a  PARENT ORIENTATION MEETING to be held on Thursday, May 30th, starting at 7:30 pm at the Eureka High School Lecture Hall.  OPEN PRACTICES will begin on Sun. June 2nd from 10 am to 1 pm at Arcata High School (and June 4th and 6th 6-8 pm at Fortuna High School).  Players new to the the Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Program will have the opportunity to meet and learn from our organization's EXPERIENCED COACHING STAFF, including:

Ageana Brett -  Mad-River-Humboldt Fastpitch Board Member, Former College of the Redwoods Player, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Debby Brown - Former Humboldt State University Softball Player, Humboldt State University Hall of Fame Softball Catcher, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Bobby Dolcini - Former Etna High School Varsity Softball Program Head Coach, Current Fortuna High School Varsity Softball Assistant Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Heather Goodwin - Former College of the Redwoods Softball Player, Current Eureka High School Varsity Softball Program Assistant Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Eric Helms - Fortuna High School Varsity Softball Program Head Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Kelly Helms - Former Humboldt State University Softball Player, Humboldt State University Hall of Fame Pitcher, Former Arcata High School Varsity Softball Program Head Coach, Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch President, Pitching Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach
 

Shanna McCracken - Former College of the Redwoods Softball Player, Current Eureka High School Varsity Softball Program Head Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Taiisha Pleasant -  Humboldt State University Hall of Fame Softball Player, NCAA Division II  Softball National Champion, NCAA Division II Career Record Holder for Base on Balls, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach
 

Lori Reed - Former Arcata High School Varsity Softball Program Coach, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

Michaela Satter - Former Lewis and Clark College Softball Player, Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Coach

In addition to the above listed coaches, the Mad River Mist - Humboldt Fastpitch Travel Program also brings in former and current softball players from College of the Redwoods, Humboldt State University, and elsewhere to assist with practices throughout the season as well as recruits experienced fitness experts to host fitness and agility training sessions during the winter months.

In preparation for Thursday night's PARENT ORIENTATION MEETING, please click on the links below to check out these important documents.

• Tentative Summer Schedule (16u may attend June 21-23rd Rohnert Park event pending player  numbers)
• May 30, 2013 Parent Meeting Flyer
• May 30, 2013 Parent Meeting  Agenda 

If you have any questions, please send us an email.  Thank you! 

Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Board of Directors

 

 

CONGATES TO ALLY SNIPES

Mad River Mist player Ally Snipes announced late last week that she will be playing college ball for Humboldt Sate University. Congratulations ALLY!   This announcement comes on the heels of Eureka High Schools commanding 10-2 victory over Analy High School in the North Coast Sectional D-3 playoffs on Saturday.  Given Humboldt State's track record of hitting the long-ball throughout their stellar 2013 season, it was only fitting that ALLY hit TWO home runs in Saturday's playoff game. 

Mad River Mist - Humboldt Fastpitch player Ally Snipes recently announced her intent to
play for Humboldt State University in the 2014 season.    

Following the high school playoffs, Ally will continue to practice and play with the combined 16/18u Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch girls under the tutelage of Coach Shanna McCraken. By the way, Coach McCraken, Head Softball Coach for Eureka High School and for the Mad River Mist's 16u/18u teams, will be leading the EHS Team in the D-3 semifinals against No. 7 seeded Campolindo High School on Tuesday May 2nd at 4 pm on the Eureka High School campus. Good luck Coach and congrates to you as well on a great HS season and playoff run!  We look forward to having you and your experienced coaching staff back with our 16/18u Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch ASA players. 

We also have news that Tammy Valley, former McKinleyville High School Ace pitcher and freshman player for College of the Redwoods, may be practicing with the Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch 16u/18u girls and playing in 18u tournaments with the Mist this summer. Welcome back Tammy and congratulations to you as well on your freshman season with CR! 

For those new to this blog, Ally was featured in a previous post that contains a link to a News Channel 3 video clip on the Mad River Mist Travel Program that was recorded in 2011. Ironically, Tammy is also seen in the video.  Links to the previous blog post and the video can be viewed by clicking on the links below:

    Link to News Channel 3 Blog Post
    Link to News Channel 3 Video
 

ORDER NOW - Humboldt Fastpitch Sweatshirts

The 2013 Humboldt Fastpitch Sweatshirts were more popular than ever imagined and as a result, we sold out of most sizes and faster than expected!  We have received many requests for sizes that are currently out of stock.  If you are interested in a Humboldt Fastpitch Sweatshirt, we need to know as soon as possible so that we can get them ordered and returned prior to the season ending FINALE TOURNAMENT.  To download the hoodie order form click here or access on the forms section of this blog.  Please fill out the order form and return it to a snack bar at your earliest convenience.  We also need you to PLEASE SEND US AN EMAIL AS SOON AS POSSIBLE with the size specified on your completed order form.  Orders need to be in by Friday May 31, 2013 to allow us to  pass them out at the finale tournament.  Thanks!

 

 Have a great and safe holiday weekend.

 

~Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Board 

Opening Season Tournament May 3-5, 2013

The weather is set and so are the BRACKETS for the Opening Tournament for the Humboldt Fastpitch 2013 season, scheduled for May 3-5, 2013.  Tournament brackets with game times can be downloaded from this website.  A big shout out to all of the VOLUNTEERS that are helping to make this event possible for your  girls, with folks like Kelly, Ageana, Frank, Shanna, and the rest of the Board, Association Officers,  and Regional Rec Program Reps working tirelessly this season.  Please take a moment to thank them! 

Also, we are desperately needing parents to volunteer to work at the Snack Shacks at the various fields (particularly Bartow and Newburg) that the girls will be playing on this weekend and during the rest of the season.  Please talk to your coach, send us an email, or just walk up to the Snack Shack and offer to fill a time slot between your daughter's games or the following day.  Better yet, offer to manage one of the Snack Shacks for the season, either as an individual or as a group of volunteer parents!  PLEASE STEP UP AND CONTRIBUTE!   This is a critical source of funding for your  program to help cover the costs of fields, umpires, and equipment and we need your help to make it run smoothly.  Please stayed tuned for more information and get ready to PLAY BALL!    

2013 Game Schedules Released

We know that many of you have been eagerly awaiting the 2013 Softball Recreational Schedule, and we appreciate your patience as we've sorted through the 300 registrants, ordered necessary equipment to safely outfit so many kids, finalized team placements, developed and calendared practice schedules, rummaged through the various organizations' uniforms, and worked diligently to acquire fields, insurance, and assemble game schedules. The logistics of our county-wide program presents many challenges that takes time to coordinate among the volunteers that help run your rapidly expanding ASA softball program. 

That said, we are pleased to release the game schedules for the 2013 season, which can be downloaded off this blog in the panel to the right titled "2013 Game Schedules".  Thank you to the many volunteers and coaches that provided feedback and necessary corrections to the schedule.

Please note that players will start the season with a collection of uniforms provided by the various organizations who have merged together to create Humboldt Fastpitch. However, our organizations' players will be debuting BRAND NEW HUMBOLDT FASTPITCH UNIFORMS that will be distributed and worn for our first tournament scheduled for May 3-6. These uniforms were made possible by welcomed and generous sponsorships from local organizations, including the Kiwanis of Fortuna, the Melvin F. & Grace McLean Foundation, the Soroptimist International of Eel River Valley, and the generosity of the Merv George Benefit Concert! 

If you have any questions as the season progresses, please don't hesitate to ask. We hope you all have a safe and enjoyable season.  NOW LETS PLAY BALL!

The Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Board
                          &
Recreation Division Executive Committee

Return of Sunday Pitching Clinics!

Exciting news! We have put Sunday pitching clinics back on the calendar!  Starting next Sunday, April 21, pitching clinics will be in full swing on the north and south ends of the county.  Clinics are open to all players registered with Humboldt Fastpitch for a $5 clinic fee and to all other interested fastpitch players for a $10 clinic fee.  Pitching hosts for North County will be Miranda Hansen, a high school softball pitcher from McKinleyville, and for the South County participants, Morgan Harwood and Courtney Christensen, pitchers from Fortuna High School. These one-hour sessions are designed to assist beginning and returning pitchers in developing a consistent warm up routine that will aid in proper pitching mechanics and improve speed and accuracy.  During these weekly 1-hour sessions, pitchers will brush-up on their current pitching routines as well as work to identify weaknesses in their motion. The development of new pitches may also be considered depending on the strength of pitcher technique, speed, and accuracy.  Details are as follows:

For North County Participants:  Pitching clinics will take place at Arcata High School starting with a 1:15 pm check-in for all players participating in the 8u and 10u divisions. Check-in time will be at 2:15 p.m for pitchers in the 12u and 14u age brackets. Sunday sessions will run 1-hour for each age group.  

For South County Participants:  Pitching clinics will take place at Newburg Park Field #2 starting at 11 a.m. check-in for all players participating in any age division. Sunday session will run 1-hour.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask!  Pitching clinics will be available EVERY SUNDAY, unless otherwise notified!

~ The Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Softball Board ~

2013 Season Update & News!!!

Our Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Softball Organization hosted its annual coaches meeting on Tuesday night, March 26th. The turnout from coaches from across the wide geographic region covered by Humboldt Fastpitch was excellent! THANK YOU COACHES! Placement of players and coaches to teams were distributed and all players/parents should be receiving a phone call from their assigned coach within the next couple of days. In addition, we'vee asked all coaches to hold a Team parent meeting to facilitate exchange of information regarding the upcoming season. We encourage ALL parents to attend this important meeting with your respective coaches. And the great news is...  fields are in excellent condition and practices will start very soon!

We want to remind returning parents and players and encourage those new to our organization that the Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch Organization does much of our communication via email and facebook. If you are not already a facebook friend, consider becoming one at:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/HumboldtFastpitchSoftball/.  If you are not receiving emails from Humboldtfastpitch@gmail.com, its either because our emails are being redirected to your spam folder, we have an incorrect email address for you, or you have yet to be added to our email list.  Please check your spam folder for Humboldt Fastpitch emails and if found, unblock us.  Otherwise, send us an email at the address above and we will add you to our communications list - and please specify if your interest is in the Recreation or Travel Program or both!  

Want to be "STYLIN"  on the field this season while at the same time supporting girls fastpitch in our local communities?  We have some exciting new spirit wear that reflect the change that is occurring within the Mad River - Humboldt Fastpitch Organization!  Use these links to download the PRE-ORDER FORMS for the Humbolt Fastpitch Sweatshirt pictured below and a Humboldt Fastpitch earwarmer...  a very handy item for our chilly Humboldt County climate! Completed order forms can be turned in to any coach, regional rep, or board member. We would like to collect orders by April 15th, 2013.

Also we are IN NEED AND ACTIVELY SEEKING VOLUNTEERS to take leadership roles in various capacities, including running the different snack bars, managing and maintaining equipment, field prep, and more! If any of you are interested in helping, PLEASE LET US KNOW ASAP!

We also want to remind players that Fortuna High School is hosting a Softball Clinic April 1st-April 4th, 2013. Please note that all players are welcome! Hopefully ride-share options are available for our Northern and Eastern players who would like to attend!

Have a great day and get ready to PLAY BALL!

The Mad River-Humboldt Fastpitch Softball Board