By Hope-Valarie Pashos

In the ‘80s, softball coaches were looking for a way to improve their skills and share information. Softballplayers were able to go to clinics and camps and improve their abilities to PLAY the game, so why not have a place for coaches to improve their skills at COACHING the game? Collegiate coaches wanted awards programs, a forum to discuss issues affecting their sport, a means to better educate coaches and update them on softball-related actions, and representation of the group’s views in organizations such as the NCAA and ASA.

It was from that need that the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) was born. It was determined that the purpose of the NFCA was “to educate softball coaches and the public in the game of softball, including coordinating the relationship between softball team membership and other educational endeavors through the development of softball in all its aspects as an amateur sport, including maintaining communication of new ideas and discussion of issues involving softball and education,” as shared in their mission statement on their Web site, www.nfca.org. The NFCA planned to achieve these goals by initiating softball clinics, hosting national softball conventions, conducting regional meetings, and by providing official publications to all members. The major sources of income were expected to come from membership dues, corporate sponsors, and clinics.

Major programs run by the NFCA include awards programs (All-American, coaching staff of the year, victory club, scholar-athlete and top 10 academic teams), a national convention, recruiting camps, Leadoff Classic tournaments for NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior college, and USA Today coaches polls for NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III and high school. The NFCA’s newspaper, Fastpitch Delivery, has become one of the nation’s best softball publications, and its Web site, Home Plate on the World Wide Web, is one of the fastest-growing softball-oriented sites in the country.

One of the organization’s most popular and utilized offerings is that of the highly sought after recruiting camps. Since their debut in 1993, the NFCA’s recruiting camps have become one of the most popular ways for high school athletes to showcase their talent to college coaches. In 2006, the camps attracted more than 7,000 applicants and 1,600 pre-registered college coaches from around the nation. The NFCA also provides information for prospective college players, instructs players and their parents about the process to become eligible to play NCAA softball, as well as maintaining a clearinghouse of high school athletes that are accessible to its members for recruiting purposes.

A new major initiative of the association is its National Fastpitch Coaches College (NFCC), which gives coaches in-depth training in all aspects of the game. Former 23-year Northwestern University Head Coach Sharon Drysdale has been the director of the NFCC since September of 2001. Her duties include the development of training materials and course selection that members may earn credit towards accreditation as a Four Star Master Coach.

Drysdale has had the honor to coach many international coaches, spreading the seeds that will grow the sport into an even bigger international phenomenon. The more qualified, knowledgeable instructors there are, the more fun the game will be. Drysdale has been active in both the NCAA and NFCA, serving as chair of the NCAA Softball Rules Committee and as a member of the NFCA Division I All-American and Coaching Staff of the Year committee, as well as the bylaws committee. She is also responsible for writing the NFCA bylaws.

“Since the organization increased its membership by welcoming assistant coaches, high school coaches, travel ball coaches and affiliate members – constituting of umpires, foreign coaches, professional coaches, former coaches and those persons generally interested in softball, it is exciting to be able to give coaches in-depth training in all aspects of the game,” said Drysdale, who was inducted into the NFCA Hall of Fame in 1994.

Coaches, players, and parents alike can all look to the NFCA for guidance and answers to the questions they might have – whether it is how to approach a college coach or how to improve skills related to conflict management, negotiation, communication, leadership, or motivation of players.

For more information on the NFCA, please visit their website at www.nfca.org.