Overall, there are a lot of great youth leagues in the area. And all of those leagues have travel teams which are a great way to allow those more gifted kids the chance to compete with other kids at their same skill level, thereby improving their own abilities.

However, over-burdening players' schedules with too many practices, games, and tournaments can also end up having a detrimental effect on the players and the families.

• Tournament fees, general admission, facility rental fees, over-night tournament stays (including hotel rooms and travel expenses) all adds up and can be a financial burden to families. Many travel teams either require a high registration fee, require fundraising by the families, or both to cover these expenses.
  
  
• Hyper-focusing kids on one sport doesn't allow them to take a physical and mental break, or to play another sport and allow them to come back to baseball refreshed and excited all over again. 

At Huntertown, our travel league provides a more competitive environment for more skilled kids while still allowing them to be a kid and not over-burdening the family.

Age Groups and Requirements

We currently sponsor a 14U travel softball teams (birth years must be 2009-2010 for the 2023-2024 season)

If you are interested in coaching and recruiting a 10U (birth years 2013-2014) or 12U (birth years 2011-2012) travel softball team, please email your inquiry to [email protected].

Schedules

• Tryouts are typically held the 2nd half of July with team rosters being finalized soon after.
  
• Teams will typically use the remainder of the fall to schedule some practices, team functions, and possibly even a few games to allow the players, coaches and families to get to know each other and bond.
  
• Over the winter months, teams may use indoor facilities to hold periodic practices to keep players’ skills sharp.
  
• Once the weather breaks and fields are playable, practices will be held outdoors and the frequency will start to ramp up.
  
• Games typically start in early-April and continue until early-July. Most travel teams play tournaments or double-headers on select weekends, but may also play a game during the week. All in all, you can expect to play around 20-25 travel games during the season (fewer for younger divisions, more for older divisions).
  

Locations

• Home games will be played in Huntertown and road games are typically around the region - Warsaw, Huntington, Ft. Wayne, Kendallville, for example - no further away than 1.5 hours so there are no overnight stays (or the added expense that come with them).
  
• Periodically, a team may decide to attend more “prestigious” tournaments, but the additional cost and time commitment for such tournaments is up to the team to discuss and decide on as a group.
  

Fees

• Fees are typically around 3-4x the fall ball registration fee. As part of the registration, the league covers the cost for the uniforms, standard tournament fees, umpires, and provides the use of the facilities for practices and home games.
  
• Families should not have to pay for anything out of the ordinary and fundraising should not be required (unless deciding to attend the more “prestigious” tournaments noted above).
  

• In return for covering team fees and expenses, players are required to also play in the Huntertown Spring Softball league. This benefits both the travel player and the house players in multiple ways:
  • Travel players are typically the "all-star" of their house team which helps to bolster their confidence, self-esteem, and the opportunity to take on a leadership role with their house ball teammates
  • Travel players are able to play additional positions, like pitching or catching, that they may not have the opportunity to play on house ball
  • House players tend to improve quicker and “play up” to the skill level of the travel players
• Finally, in return for keeping costs low, each travel ball team will have two “Service Days” per season at the Huntertown Lions Baseball and Softball diamonds.
  • One service day at the beginning or end of the season to help get the diamonds and the facilities ready for the season or closed for the Winter.
  • This other day is during the Spring or Fall seasons where each team will help to pick-up trash in the fences, under the bleachers and around the park, empty all trash cans, and wheel all the recycling bins to the road for pick-up.

Tryouts

Huntertown Lions holds tryouts for their travel softball teams. All tryouts are held at the Huntertown Lions Baseball and Softball Fields located on the grounds of Huntertown Elementary @ 15330 Lima Rd, Huntertown, IN 46748.

Check the calendar for dates and times of tryouts.

You only need to attend one tryout date per team. All tryouts will last approximately 1.5 - 2 hours. Please bring your player’s gear (gloves, helmet, catchers equipment, etc.) and something to keep hydrated.

Additional Questions

For any additional questions, please feel free to email [email protected]