How to prepare your game for the collegiate level

There are lots of ideas here, and lots of opinions from many sources. We believe the bottom line is these four points.

  • Play up, maybe lose and learn
  • Hit the gym, the right way
  • Get agile and use your head
  • Work with a private trainer

Many players play in their age group, compete and grow against their direct peers, and continue learning. When the time comes those players will play the next level up with all of their peers. Who says you have to stay at that level? There is no reason you can’t play up and improve your skill level against more challenging players. If nothing else, at minimum a few times a year everyone should play up. There are tons of 14U and 16U players that have there A, AA, and even AAA ratings. You won’t win every game, but if you show up ready to learn and strategize, your game will improve and with a coach to help improvement will come faster.

There are many high school level players who think they can hit the gym once they make it to college. OK, so the college program has trainers and equipment, but so what? You should know your way around a gym. You should know how to protect yourself from exercises that push your body too far. It’s not fun to have your college career sidelined because you have a season off. Before you show up in college you should be able to have an intelligent conversation with your trainer so you can get more out of your workout.

Defined muscles can be fast and agile, they can also be big and slow. This is where the right muscle training comes in, and the right trainer. You can find the right trainer for you, someone who will train you on getting your own program so that you can manage on your own and not spend hundreds of dollars every month all year long.

Training with your peers and your club is great but get the extra reps you need with a private coach to work on one to two skill sets and master your skills.

All of this will probably lead to one emotion, being uncomfortable. Whenever someone goes outside of their comfort zone, it often means there is an opportunity to grow. Take advantage of that. Ask questions. Learn from your competitors and team mates. Improve!

Remember, there is always someone who is training harder, longer and going the extra mile to get results.  Coaches are looking for girls who are physically fit, athletic, coachable and react well under pressure.  Not always do coaches recruit players who win.  There are looking for the complete package.  Dedication plays a big part of making to college and even more dedication to play in college. BVNE wishes you all good luck on your journey!