The two softball coaching tips I like to pass on to new coaches are these–a simple drill & tips. There is a drill that I’ve been using with the JV softball girls that I call the zipper drill. Use it along with the tips that I use to keep the practices fun and uses a yellow tennis ball. Give both of these a try for excellent teamwork ideas.
Zipper Drill
Say your team has 14 girls.
They would line up in 2 rows of 7 like they were going to throw to each other.
The ball starts at one end and they throw like a zipper.
The first girl throws it to the player directly in front of her and then that girl throws it to the girl standing next to the girl who just threw it to her and so on.
You can time it to see how long it takes to get from one end to the other and then they try to beat their time.
It helps with using game-like throws and it works on team building!!
Coaching Tips:
Two things we like to do to keep our practices fun:
1. For concentration we will use a yellow tennis ball. If a girl is not paying attention we will throw it up at her. If she catches it the coach has to run; if not she has to run. Improves concentration!
2. We play imaginary ball.