At 9U and 10U travel was nothing more than playing more than eighteen rec games. It allowed my son to play six more weeks after mid June. The kids were all from the same town. We never played more than two games in a day. It never involved a full day commitment. Tournaments were all within ten miles. At 11U and 12U it was to make the kids sharper for all-stars. It worked. It was only a Sunday doubleheader league. It took up a Sunday afternoon.quote:Playing outside of rec is for improving your child to the best of his abilities.
From the 9U/10U program there's one high school varsity player even though this team won most of it's games. From the 11U/12U program there are three additional high school varsity players from similar results.
There's absolutely nothing anyone can say to convince me preteen travel matters. I can't find a high school or college coach who says it matters. The best I've heard is some kids are learning better fundamentals earlier. But that's a function of the coaching, not the level of preteen ball.