50 | Young Athletes Deserve a VOICE in 2024!

[00:00:00] Yeah, it's so funny. When I played, PGF didn't exist. And props to them. I think they've done a great job. And I think it's an ideal location as well.

[00:00:12] And so for me personally, the vision was always to bring people together. And so the one thing, yes, we do compete on is the date of our national championship.

[00:00:23] And really, if you look at the calendar, it's small. There's not a whole lot of opportunities. And so when these events, ours included, are seven days, there's going to be some overlap.

[00:00:33] However, we thought it was really important for our sport and for these athletes to get back to earning. The births and qualification process had gone away.

[00:00:44] We tried to bring it back with USA Elite Select and it was hard. We just didn't have the right structure there. And I don't think the market was ready for it yet.

[00:00:51] Hello and welcome to Catching You, a dad and daughter softball journey. I'm Rusty, a dad who's been in the dugout and on the sidelines.

[00:01:00] And I'm Lacie, the daughter whose journey through softball has been filled with incredible wins, tough losses, and so many lessons both on and off the field.

[00:01:08] For the past 16 years, we've navigated the highs and lows of softball together. From the local fields to national tournaments and everything in between.

[00:01:16] From the challenges of recruitment during COVID to the mental and emotional roller coaster that comes with being a student athlete, we'll be sharing the perspectives of both a parent and athlete and first-hand experience of the impact of sports on mental health and the importance of support from the sidelines.

[00:01:33] Welcome back, everybody, to Catching You. I am your co-host, Rusty Hamm with me and my beautiful daughter, Lacie Hamm. Lacie, say hi.

[00:01:41] Hi. And then we have another special guest with us today, Jamie Loprice. Jamie is the CEO of Alliance Fast Pitch. I'm sure a lot of you in the softball world have heard of her and knows Alliance Fast Pitch.

[00:01:57] She is also the host of her own podcast, The Car Ride Home.

[00:02:03] Very cool. Lacie, I think you wanted to touch on the PAC. I don't feel like that.

[00:02:10] Yeah. So it's called like Player Advisory Committee, right?

[00:02:14] Mm-hmm.

[00:02:14] So I'm a part of our school's SAC, the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.

[00:02:20] So when I found out it was like Player Advisory Committee, I was like, oh, it might be something similar to maybe the SAC that I'm in for San Jose State.

[00:02:32] So I wanted to know more about what the initiative is with the PAC and maybe if it's similar to what I'm doing in my college space.

[00:02:42] It's exactly the same. I, too, was a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee when I was at A&M.

[00:02:47] So props to you, Lacie. Great job of being involved in that.

[00:02:51] And I think at first I wanted to call it the YAC, by the way, the Youth Advisory Committee.

[00:02:56] But you think it's a player.

[00:02:58] In our mission statement, a lot of what we talk about is being about the player and putting her at the forefront.

[00:03:04] Then it's like, duh moment for me was she needs to have a seat at the table.

[00:03:09] The athlete voice needs to be amplified and we need to make sure that the athletes are heard.

[00:03:14] And because my experience at A&M, I got to be part of the SAC.

[00:03:18] And I remember sitting in meetings with the athletic director and the different like athletic office and administration.

[00:03:24] Oh, wait, we could do this inside the Alliance.

[00:03:28] And again, I think it's preparing them for what they'll do in college.

[00:03:32] So now, Lacie, I'm going to have you come talk to our player advisory committee as well, just so that they know, hey, this is an opportunity for you guys to continue to have a voice, continue to bring up opportunities for change in different initiatives and things.

[00:03:46] But we launched it.

[00:03:47] This will be the third year now of the player advisory committee.

[00:03:50] It's for juniors and seniors inside the Alliance.

[00:03:53] It's actually a pretty robust application process.

[00:03:56] They have to get letters of recommendation.

[00:03:58] And what's been really cool is we have athletes like Tegan Kavan was one of the team Kavan and Kane Henry were both members.

[00:04:06] And now we see what they're doing athletically at the University of Texas.

[00:04:09] But we had a Harvard student.

[00:04:12] We have a Penn student.

[00:04:15] We have athletes that are going Division 2, Division 3, Division 1.

[00:04:20] And I think that's what's so cool.

[00:04:22] And these are young ladies who want to be leaders and be help make change.

[00:04:27] So I love it.

[00:04:28] I just had a meeting last night.

[00:04:29] I get fired up with that.

[00:04:31] So I want to clarify.

[00:04:32] These are junior and seniors in high school, right?

[00:04:35] High school.

[00:04:36] Yep.

[00:04:37] Awesome.

[00:04:37] It sounds awfully similar to what I'm doing.

[00:04:40] We also, we meet with the Department of Justice from my school.

[00:04:44] We meet with our athletic director.

[00:04:46] We host all these events for the student-athletes to do.

[00:04:49] I think this Sunday we're doing like pickleball.

[00:04:53] But it's really cool to be like a representative of my team.

[00:04:57] And then I go into those meetings and now we're the representatives of the whole athletic.

[00:05:01] And then I got to start my own branch under our SAC for mental health with student-athletes.

[00:05:07] So I got to do that.

[00:05:09] And that's something I've always wanted to do my whole college career.

[00:05:13] You can do branches if you want to.

[00:05:15] Like, you have all these different things.

[00:05:16] And all these different opportunities that I've gotten to do through the advisory committee.

[00:05:23] I think it's really cool that they get to start super early and start in their junior, senior year.

[00:05:27] Especially like when they get committed, then they can be like, oh, maybe I can join the SAC in my new school.

[00:05:34] Because I think every school should have one, especially in NCAA.

[00:05:38] But yeah, I really like it.

[00:05:39] I think they do all have it.

[00:05:41] And it's something I didn't know about until one of my teammates.

[00:05:44] So it was that same mindset of let's prepare our player advisory committee athletes for as soon as they step foot on campus.

[00:05:51] They know about SAC.

[00:05:52] So they can either apply for it and try to be the representative for their team.

[00:05:56] Or they can make sure they find out who is the rep on their team so they can make sure they know they have that voice.

[00:06:01] But I think it's a huge part of college athletics.

[00:06:04] That's really cool that you're going through it.

[00:06:06] And I'm excited too.

[00:06:07] And I hope that we can continue to grow what we've done.

[00:06:10] We've done a live event at our national championships the past two years.

[00:06:15] And they've done some different recruiting talks.

[00:06:17] But I'm hoping that it continues to evolve.

[00:06:20] But I want it to all be driven by the player and by their ideas.

[00:06:25] Yeah, and then you have a mental health aspect to that.

[00:06:28] Because when Lacey, I'm going to remember, she got hit with a line right over the head.

[00:06:32] And she was out.

[00:06:33] When she was on Campbell's team, she was out for a little summer.

[00:06:36] Her and recruiting at that time was really high.

[00:06:39] And she couldn't play.

[00:06:40] But when she came back, she had a lot of mental health issues.

[00:06:44] Balls of wisdom by her head.

[00:06:45] And she's freaking out.

[00:06:47] Is there a mental health aspect to the pack?

[00:06:49] Do you guys address that at all?

[00:06:52] It has come up a lot when we talk to the athletes about what are some resources that you need, some things.

[00:06:59] And a lot of them talk about mental health.

[00:07:02] A lot of them, I don't know if you can relate to this too, Lacey.

[00:07:04] A lot of them talk about identity in regards to being more than just a softball player.

[00:07:08] And making sure that we're having those conversations.

[00:07:11] And from a mental health standpoint, they have led, they actually created a journal, which I thought was pretty cool.

[00:07:17] And have shared that with all the athletes inside the Alliance.

[00:07:21] There was about, I think, four of them who got together and built this journal of just something, a tool that they could have.

[00:07:27] And then we've brought in different experts in that area as well to provide resources for the Alliance athletes too.

[00:07:35] It's a huge part of our game.

[00:07:37] That's, identity has probably been the biggest thing probably over the past two years.

[00:07:42] I'd say because my first three years here, we were part of a mental health organization, a branch from another school.

[00:07:49] And then we decided to form our own this year.

[00:07:52] And we're actually going to do a workshop the first weekend of November from one of our counselors here at San Jose State.

[00:08:01] And he's going to talk about the identity of being an athlete and not letting it consume you.

[00:08:07] I think that's been the biggest, not issue, but like topic within our like mental health space for the past two years, I think.

[00:08:18] Like, especially with my team last year, we had a sports psychologist come in and do certain sessions with us.

[00:08:25] And we talked about identity and what we like to do outside of softball and what makes you feel good without softball.

[00:08:32] So, yeah, it's a huge topic right now.

[00:08:34] I agree.

[00:08:36] We've talked a lot.

[00:08:38] We've interviewed a lot of past college players.

[00:08:40] And their senior year was pivotal and Lacey's in her senior year.

[00:08:44] And it's like, they play, she's been playing since she's five years old.

[00:08:48] And then all of a sudden it just stops.

[00:08:50] And so like, how do you handle that?

[00:08:52] And then we're also going through issues where, you know, some of them, they want their senior year to be over with because they've probably had a very bad experience.

[00:09:00] Or if some don't want it to end because they want to go to the World Series, they have a great experience.

[00:09:04] There's those mental health issues, right, that kind of pop up and that need to be addressed at times.

[00:09:11] Let's, I know the comparison between PGF and Alliance.

[00:09:16] Some people, some people are pro this, pro that.

[00:09:19] I know why your structure of Alliance, the way it's, the tournament's structured, it's supposed to simulate the World Series.

[00:09:28] How did you guys come up with that?

[00:09:30] And have you made any adjustments or have you made any, you know, because I know there was a ranking system in the beginning.

[00:09:38] And I'm not sure if you guys still do that or not.

[00:09:40] Yeah, it's so funny.

[00:09:41] Like, when I played, PGF didn't exist.

[00:09:45] And like, props to them.

[00:09:47] I think they've done a great job.

[00:09:50] And I think it's an ideal location as well.

[00:09:53] And so for me personally, the vision was always to bring people together.

[00:09:59] And so the one thing, yes, we do compete on is the date of our national championship.

[00:10:04] And really, if you look at the calendar, it's small.

[00:10:07] There's not a whole lot of opportunities.

[00:10:09] And so when these events, ours included, are seven days, there's going to be some overlap.

[00:10:14] However, we thought it was really important for our sport and for these athletes to get back to earning.

[00:10:22] The births and qualification process had gone away.

[00:10:25] We tried to bring it back with USA Elite Select and it was hard.

[00:10:29] We just didn't have the right structure there.

[00:10:30] And I don't think the market was ready for it yet.

[00:10:32] But these were the organizations that were like, yeah, my top team is getting a birth out of a boardroom.

[00:10:39] But my other teams aren't.

[00:10:41] And so there was just a lot of inequities that I think were going on.

[00:10:45] And so, hey, we're athletes, right?

[00:10:46] Let's compete.

[00:10:47] And so that was really the why of why we wanted to create a qualification process and having to earn a birth to get to national championship.

[00:10:55] It's risky because when teams are just used to, hey, I got my date, that's easier for parents to like, all right, we know we're going every year.

[00:11:02] But for the athletes and being prepared for college, let's see, learning to compete and finish games and play seven innings, that matters, right?

[00:11:11] Like when you get to campus on fall, you got to know how to compete till the end.

[00:11:15] And so that's what we did.

[00:11:17] We created a qualification process.

[00:11:19] And then our format is Super Bowl.

[00:11:20] It has evolved.

[00:11:21] From year one, we started with tiers out of the gates.

[00:11:26] And then year two, Dave McCorkle actually came in and restructured it to where all teams start.

[00:11:31] And what is, we call them regionals, but it's like an opening bracket.

[00:11:35] And then it is seeded.

[00:11:37] Derek Allister from On Deck leads our seeding committee.

[00:11:40] We're looking constantly, just like RPI, just like in Civil A.

[00:11:42] We're looking at your record.

[00:11:45] We're looking at your rankings.

[00:11:46] We're looking at head-to-head.

[00:11:47] We're looking at the value of the tournaments that you're playing in.

[00:11:49] It is a thorough process that Derek leads.

[00:11:53] And if you look at the numbers, it's pretty dang good, too.

[00:11:56] So we seed the top 32 teams, and they go into regional brackets.

[00:12:00] And then you got a butt, right?

[00:12:02] There were some upsets this year that were awesome out of regionals.

[00:12:07] And the top two from each regional advanced to tier one.

[00:12:11] The next two go to tier two.

[00:12:13] The next go to tier three.

[00:12:14] Great.

[00:12:15] What's super cool about that is now it resets, and you get to compete again.

[00:12:20] So you might have gone 0 and 2 in regionals, but now you're in tier three, and you have

[00:12:24] an opportunity to go on a run.

[00:12:25] And it levels out the playing as well.

[00:12:28] And once you get through super regionals, you got to win your super to get into the Elite

[00:12:32] Eight.

[00:12:32] And that's played just like the Women's College World Series.

[00:12:35] So it's even like if you win game one and lose game two, you switch brackets.

[00:12:40] And the World Series, they like follow A, bracket B.

[00:12:44] And then our championship goes the best two out of three, which even 12 of you played a

[00:12:48] best two out of three championship last year.

[00:12:50] And a lot of ours have gone to three games.

[00:12:53] We've yet to have an 18-year go to three games.

[00:12:55] They've all been two-game sweeps.

[00:12:58] But it's a grind because we do it all in a week.

[00:13:00] But it's pretty cool.

[00:13:02] And the kids love it.

[00:13:04] That's what everybody, when they leave, like the format is what they all talk about in

[00:13:09] going through it.

[00:13:10] Yeah, I think those are the difference.

[00:13:11] You got the weather, and then you got the format.

[00:13:14] That's the toss-up.

[00:13:15] But you are good luck to Lacey because Lacey has won two championships, one with USA.

[00:13:22] And then she also did tier two.

[00:13:24] She was a champion in tier two.

[00:13:25] Oklahoma City.

[00:13:26] I do remember that.

[00:13:27] Wow.

[00:13:28] Yeah.

[00:13:28] Yeah.

[00:13:29] And one of the best parts was like, I got to end my travel ball career on the Batbusters

[00:13:36] because I did have, during COVID, there was just like all these obstacles that I and my

[00:13:42] family had to go through for the recruiting process, especially because of my head injury

[00:13:47] and now COVID where coaches can't even come watch me play during my junior year.

[00:13:52] Going back to Batbusters and being on Brockamonte, I got to finish my travel ball career with four

[00:13:59] or five girls that I started with on Coach Chris's team.

[00:14:03] And then the whole World Series.

[00:14:06] I don't know.

[00:14:07] How do you call it?

[00:14:08] The way it...

[00:14:10] Yeah.

[00:14:10] Yeah.

[00:14:10] And for a lot of some of the girls, some were going D2, some were going Juteco.

[00:14:16] We really cherished that moment we were playing on the championship field in Oklahoma City because it's very rare for some people to go and play on that field.

[00:14:28] So it was like an experience that just everyone talks about.

[00:14:34] We still talk about it every single year.

[00:14:37] Every summer, it's coming up in our memories.

[00:14:38] And the two out of three is so hard.

[00:14:42] It was really hard in that, definitely in that age for sure because we never experienced anything like that.

[00:14:50] It was just like the championship game.

[00:14:51] I don't think we went to a third game.

[00:14:54] I think we did win in two, but it was like really close, I think.

[00:14:59] But yeah, it was good to like finally end in a dog pile.

[00:15:04] And then getting MVP and now that was the best part.

[00:15:08] But it's awesome.

[00:15:09] A solid memory from that was like because it was so hot again, like Kansas City was.

[00:15:15] All of us, they have the treatment center.

[00:15:18] Like you guys had like the Normatex and the Theraguns.

[00:15:22] And we're like, this is so cool.

[00:15:23] This is like going to college.

[00:15:25] And you can see us all in the Normatex.

[00:15:27] Just like, bang.

[00:15:29] From how many games?

[00:15:30] I think we went to three games with another Batbuster team to go to the championship.

[00:15:35] Go for the thing.

[00:15:36] Batbuster go.

[00:15:38] Yeah.

[00:15:38] So that was like a really crazy series that we had.

[00:15:41] And we're all so dead.

[00:15:43] But in year one.

[00:15:45] So in that year one of supers, it was like a real, it was like college supers where it was two teams, best of three to get into the elite eight.

[00:15:55] We have changed that.

[00:15:56] It's now four teams that go in to the super in the, so that you could play more teams instead of just like, oh yeah, you went through, you went through the real grind in Oklahoma City.

[00:16:09] Wait, I'm sorry.

[00:16:10] Is it still in Oklahoma City or have you changed the location?

[00:16:13] No.

[00:16:14] Because at first we were rotating through the different locations.

[00:16:17] But we actually just announced this year all age divisions will be in Indiana.

[00:16:22] So we found a home in Indiana three years ago.

[00:16:25] We had been in Florida at Space Coast.

[00:16:27] It's an incredible facility.

[00:16:29] But the weather in Florida, I live here in July is not good.

[00:16:35] It's going to rain every single day.

[00:16:36] It's going to lightening every single day.

[00:16:39] And so the weather, it's right, it's north of Indianapolis.

[00:16:42] It's not far from Michigan or wherever.

[00:16:45] It's pretty far up there.

[00:16:46] So the weather is actually really nice.

[00:16:48] And they've got 42 turf fields in basically one location.

[00:16:54] It's incredible.

[00:16:56] Yeah, I remember Lacey being on Katie Stiff's team.

[00:16:59] We went to Florida to play and I was hanging up the camera to show them.

[00:17:02] And my shirt within 10 minutes was all wet because of the humidity.

[00:17:06] It's a little humid here.

[00:17:07] I know for you California people, it's a little bit different.

[00:17:11] Let's final topic.

[00:17:14] Recruiting in the transfer portal.

[00:17:16] I want to get your thoughts because obviously recruiting has changed over time, right?

[00:17:22] I'm leaning towards some girls.

[00:17:26] They just, they get recruited, but they use it almost like JC.

[00:17:32] Like they're go to one school and then, but they have their eyes set on another school and

[00:17:37] they're going to put their name on the transfer portal because they think they're going to

[00:17:40] do real well in their freshman year.

[00:17:41] And then they're just going to transfer to the school.

[00:17:42] They really want to go.

[00:17:44] But what are your thoughts of the recruiting process now with AI and social media?

[00:17:51] And it's so much different now.

[00:17:53] What are your thoughts on that and then the transfer portal?

[00:17:58] Let's take a quick break.

[00:18:02] If you want to leave us a message, use the link in the show notes.

[00:18:05] And if you want us to respond, leave your name and email address.

[00:18:09] Also, please rate us and or leave a review as we're trying to grow the show every day.

[00:18:16] Finally, Lacey and I both love coffee.

[00:18:18] We would greatly appreciate any contribution to the show.

[00:18:21] That link is also in the show notes.

[00:18:23] Thank you.

[00:18:24] Take care.

[00:18:29] I think recruiting in general and all the different things that are coming out now, whether it's

[00:18:33] scholarship limits or it's the revenue sharing now, the conference realignment that's

[00:18:39] happening, not just at the power four, but how that's reshaping all the divisions.

[00:18:44] So often we talk about that in a lens of football in college basketball.

[00:18:49] And what's forgotten about are the softballs of the world, the volleyballs of the world.

[00:18:54] I think I saw where maybe Stanford volleyball is going to travel the most this year based

[00:18:59] on just looking at like where they're going and flying across the country to it.

[00:19:04] It's crazy to me.

[00:19:06] I am happy I played when I did and didn't have to deal with that.

[00:19:10] So I don't envy you guys.

[00:19:12] But I think it's I just think sometimes we're forgetting about the heart of what college athletics

[00:19:17] is and the student athlete.

[00:19:20] And I think we're forgetting about all the sports when a lot of these decisions are going

[00:19:24] on.

[00:19:24] But what's happening with the transfer portal is really interesting at the youth level.

[00:19:28] And Marty Tyson actually said this.

[00:19:30] He's got coaches, college coaches that are calling him about his past players who are

[00:19:35] in college because they're looking, even if the kid didn't play, they're looking at her

[00:19:40] as she's been in a college program for a year.

[00:19:42] She's been doing a college workout for a year.

[00:19:45] She's used to the balance of management of going through her freshman year already versus

[00:19:50] looking at a 2026 right now or 2027.

[00:19:54] And that's hard.

[00:19:56] That's really tough for our travel ball athletes, too.

[00:19:59] And some of that unknown now that's going on.

[00:20:02] But it is what it gets there.

[00:20:05] I think we've had a transfer portal and travel softball before we even had it in college.

[00:20:11] So to me, it's I don't think it's going anywhere.

[00:20:13] I think there is absolutely a reason for it in certain situations.

[00:20:17] I definitely think it's abused in other situations.

[00:20:21] But yeah, it's I don't envy parents or athletes have to get through it.

[00:20:27] Yeah, Lace, your team?

[00:20:29] My non-West is falling apart, basically.

[00:20:32] Yeah.

[00:20:33] But your team didn't, nobody left and no one came in.

[00:20:36] Oh, yeah.

[00:20:37] Yeah.

[00:20:37] This past year was the first year that no one transferred out and no one transferred in.

[00:20:41] We just got six new freshmen.

[00:20:44] Like the seniors graduated and everyone came back.

[00:20:47] So I take that as a great thing.

[00:20:51] All my teammates back.

[00:20:53] Obviously, the seniors graduated, but.

[00:20:56] And then six new like fresh freshmen.

[00:20:58] And we've won all our fall battle games so far.

[00:21:01] And we have some good chemistry.

[00:21:03] So I'm really excited about this year.

[00:21:05] Last year of the Mountain West because the boys and all those guys are going to win here.

[00:21:09] It's Tech 12.

[00:21:10] Mountain West is still a thing.

[00:21:12] Oh.

[00:21:13] Yeah.

[00:21:13] It's just now we're UTEP joined the Mountain West.

[00:21:18] I'm not sure about other teams, but.

[00:21:21] Our conference was definitely divided.

[00:21:24] But I won't be here to experience that.

[00:21:26] And what I'm really angry about, though, is my team will be traveling to Hawaii.

[00:21:29] And I was like, that's great.

[00:21:35] I'm so happy for you guys.

[00:21:38] Good stuff.

[00:21:39] Thank you so much.

[00:21:41] That was a great scene.

[00:21:42] And we appreciate it.

[00:21:44] Again, we appreciate the way you treated us while we were in Kansas City.

[00:21:47] That was such a fun experience.

[00:21:49] It was weird because we, the team, right?

[00:21:52] At least in Kansas City, we came together.

[00:21:55] We won.

[00:21:56] We were all energetic.

[00:21:58] And then I think this is the rub of playing in Southern California from Southern California.

[00:22:03] We get to PGF thinking we're going to win the whole thing because we just won this tournament.

[00:22:08] And we were all, but we're staying at different, you know, we're staying at our homes and we're commuting into, to Irvine.

[00:22:17] Yeah, honey's meets your Irvine.

[00:22:19] And we didn't have that sense of closeness, right?

[00:22:22] It was just, we were like traveling in and we'd warm up and then we'd play.

[00:22:26] And it just, I don't know, Lace, if you want to touch on that a little bit.

[00:22:28] Yeah, I've always talked about, especially with like my college teammates now who experience PGF as well.

[00:22:35] But they're like, some of them are from Southern California.

[00:22:38] But it's just like the feeling of going to your hotel with your teammates and having breakfast together and leaving the hotel together.

[00:22:47] And we, after a tough racket play game, we're like, all right, let's go home.

[00:22:53] And I'm sleeping in my own bed and it's, it didn't feel like a national championship to me.

[00:22:58] Like, I don't think ever when I played in PGF.

[00:23:01] It just felt like another tournament where I was driving home after a cool play game or a bracket play and I'll do it over again the next day.

[00:23:11] And then PGF, I'm playing six, seven games in a day because we're in the loser's bracket.

[00:23:17] And gosh, I just gotta, I gotta go home.

[00:23:18] I get home at 10 p.m. and I have to wake up at 4 p.m.

[00:23:21] And yeah, mostly it was mostly the hotel thing where like people would go back to their hotel.

[00:23:26] That's five minutes away.

[00:23:28] And that their whole team was staying there.

[00:23:30] And I have most of my fond memories is after we won U-Triple-S-A, we actually went back to the hotel.

[00:23:37] All the parents are partying and do whatever they want.

[00:23:40] But like, all the worlds, we got cups from the hotel lobby and we filled them all.

[00:23:47] We weren't allowed to have soda.

[00:23:49] So now that we won, we're allowed to have soda.

[00:23:52] So now we fill all these cups up with different sodas and we were playing like soda pong.

[00:24:00] In our one hotel room, everyone's in one hotel room.

[00:24:03] We're playing soda pong with Skittles and we're all throwing Skittles into the soda cups.

[00:24:09] And that's like a memory I have of us all being in the same hotel, team camaraderie basically.

[00:24:15] And I just love that part about going to these big tournaments.

[00:24:18] And with PGF, we never had that.

[00:24:21] Yeah.

[00:24:21] The two things that were forbidden, the two things that were forbidden were soda and the swimming.

[00:24:25] They were allowed to go swimming.

[00:24:26] So where was the two?

[00:24:27] I'm never going to forget that, that my event helped create a peachy beer phone players.

[00:24:33] Of Harrah, that it's cool.

[00:24:39] You said something, Lacey, that I think is really important.

[00:24:41] It felt like another, just another tournament.

[00:24:44] It is a passion of mine to make sure that our national championships do not feel like just another tournament.

[00:24:50] Because you guys work hard all year long.

[00:24:53] You play in so many tournaments that it's always been a goal that when you step foot at one of our national events, you feel like it's different.

[00:25:00] You feel like it's a championship.

[00:25:02] And it's the same thing you go through, right?

[00:25:04] Like when you play at a conference tournament, you're waking up with your teammates.

[00:25:09] I will always remember that.

[00:25:12] And I think it's a big part of our journey.

[00:25:14] And I think travel ball, I think it's really cool for me to listen that you still have memories as a 12-year-old in our tournament.

[00:25:21] That means a ton to me.

[00:25:22] But it means that we're making an impact because I think the travel ball, like it's just a huge part of our life in softball.

[00:25:28] Cool.

[00:25:29] Awesome.

[00:25:29] Jamie, thank you again.

[00:25:30] Again, for those of you listening, it's AllianceFastPitch.com.

[00:25:34] And then if you want to listen to her podcast, it's The Car Ride Home.

[00:25:38] Actually, our car ride homes were pretty cool.

[00:25:41] I left her alone.

[00:25:42] I didn't talk to her all much.

[00:25:44] I didn't talk to her until she-

[00:25:47] What's that?

[00:25:48] Okay.

[00:25:49] I am already hard on myself as it is.

[00:25:54] And he knows that already.

[00:25:56] It took a little bit to get to that point.

[00:25:58] But when I get in the car, it's basically silence for the first 30 minutes because I'm decompressing and processing what just happened.

[00:26:05] And then I turn to him.

[00:26:07] I'm like, all right, what do you think?

[00:26:10] Well, Zach, you want my opinion?

[00:26:12] And then he'll give his opinion.

[00:26:13] It was fine.

[00:26:15] Thank you again, Jamie.

[00:26:16] Appreciate it.

[00:26:17] Again, a lot of good memories from what you've provided to the community.

[00:26:22] So take care and thank you.

[00:26:24] Lacey, I love you.

[00:26:25] Love you.

[00:26:26] Thank you, Jamie.

[00:26:27] Bye, Dias.

[00:26:28] We're proud of you.

[00:26:29] It's cool to be on this level.

[00:26:32] Thank you so much.

[00:26:34] Thanks, you guys.

[00:26:35] Thank you.

[00:26:35] Thank you.