Park Ridge Pistols FAQs
1. Do I need to live in Park Ridge to be a member of the Pistols? : Girls looking to be considered for the Pistols program need to live in Park Ridge (technically the Park Ridge Park District taxing zone) or must have played in the PRBS house leagues during a previous spring season. The Park District tax zone does include portions of Niles and surrounding areas. Girls meeting these requirements will be given priority to make the teams. Older age groups may not have a large pool of girls that meet these eligibility requirements at which time players from outside the area may be considered.
2. At what age should my daughter tryout for the first time? The 10U team is generally made up of 4th grade girls. This means that if they want to play at the 10U level they should tryout during July of the year they would be entering 4th grade. This should coordinate with their completion of the first year of Jr. Girls house league. Girls that choose not to tryout at this point are definitely encouraged to tryout at any point in future years, but entering 4th grade would be the first opportunity to become a Pistol.
3. Which age rules do you follow? We follow the USA Softball age rules, and switched to using a cutoff of September 1st for the 2023-24 season. This applies to all new teams being formed and some of our older teams. Our decision to follow USA Softball was due to the fact that it best aligns with our Mission; and developing our players for the next level (high school). Using September 1st allows us to keep players in the same school grade together rather than splitting them between teams.
4. We can’t make the tryout date scheduled for our daughters age group. What should we do? Tryouts are scheduled to cover a span of greater than 7 days. If you have a vacation planned and your daughter cannot make her age specific session, we ask that you try to make one of the other sessions that wouldn’t overlap. Scheduling and staffing these tryout sessions with volunteers is a large job and extending tryouts over several weeks is not an option.
5. When are tryouts? Pistols tryouts are scheduled around the same time each year. We try and target mid-July. Sometimes we have teams playing in “National” tournaments that may push our dates back. We will post the dates on the PRBS website a month in advance.
6. Why are tryouts held in July? Our team offseason training programs begin in January. By selecting the teams in July, we have time to coordinate training programs and begin planning for the next year’s season. Teams also have the option of playing a short Fall season.
7. What are the time commitments for playing on a Pistols team? The official start of offseason training begins in January each year, except for pitchers and catchers start in October. Teams will generally have 1-2 practices per week between January and then we head outside in April. These winter practices are held in our dedicated Park Ridge Baseball Softball indoor training facility in Mt. Prospect, and in the Maine South field house. Once the weather turns and we can get outside most of our teams practice 2-3 times per week. Starting in April we have single “house” games scheduled versus other surrounding towns. There are 15-20 of these games on the schedule. Tournaments are a large aspect of the girls’ softball sport. Our teams play at least 6 tournaments per summer beginning at 10U and would account for an additional ~30 games. This number will fluctuate based on how the team performs. These tournament dates/locations are usually set by January so that summer travel plans can be setup.
8. What if my daughter plays other sports that conflict? It is understood that many girls play multiple sports and often conflicts arise. During offseason segments of our training schedule, we want girls to play the sport that is in season. If they miss an occasional Pistols practice for another sport it is understood. When we get to spring, and softball is in season we ask that softball be the priority over the other sports. Missing practices (in-season), tournaments and games has a negative impact on the entire team and can be unfair to teammates; as well as girls who did not make the roster. If a player misses an excessive number of practices or games it can impact their standing/eligibility on the team.
9. How much does cost to play on a Pistols team? Whether looking at our house or travel programs, across the Park Ridge Baseball/Softball organization we try to provide an outstanding program with a reasonable cost. The cost for a 10U player (or any other first year player) is generally in the $1,000 - $1,100 range. This cost includes helmets, bat bags, two sets of uniforms, the training facility costs, outside coaches, fields, umpire costs, and tournament entry fees. In subsequent years, without the uniforms and equipment fees the costs is generally in the $700-$800 range.
10. Where do you practice? During the offseason our practices take place in several locations. Our primary location is the dedicated Park Ridge Baseball Softball indoor training facility in Mt. Prospect. We also utilize the Maine South Field House. Most of the Pistols games and practices utilize the Northwest 13, Brickton Park and Maine South Varsity Softball fields.
11. How long is the season? Offseason training begins in October for pitchers and catchers, everyone else in January. Games usually begin in early April and will extend until mid-July. April and early May are generally single “house” games versus other programs in the area. Starting around mid-May the teams begin tournament season and play 6-8 tournaments. These tournaments often begin with 3 pool play games split between Friday and Saturday. Sunday the teams are seeded into a tournament bracket and play until they lose. Some Sundays end early and some extend all day if the teams are playing well. Teams register for the tournaments in December - February; and tournament schedules are usually published the week before the tournament.
If you have any other questions please feel free to send an email to [email protected]