By Maysen Marolda
Staff Writer
Many students compete on a Costa athletic team in addition to participating in a club team of the same sport during off-season. While Costa teams are competitive, club sports are more beneficial to athletes because coaches focus more on skill, and it gives players more opportunities to earn valuable scholarships.
According to the Club Sports Handbook, club teams stay together year round and are designed to teach players the basic components of a sports. They also teach them more advanced tricks and maneuvers than high school teams. Club teams strive to develop players into more advanced athletes who have proficiency and dexterity in their skill.
Being on a club team rather than a high school team is beneficial for students as the club season lasts for a longer duration of time that coaches can utilize to focus on long-term training goals. As a result, club sports are able to develop valuable players as well as a strong team that is efficient in multiple aspects.
Because club sports are not linked to a high school, club teams have the ability to recruit high level players from any area, allowing athletes to compete on a higher level. Playing on high-level teams is more beneficial to players as it challenges them to work their hardest, helping them progress in their skill.
Club tournaments also provide more exposure for players as they often attract college scouts. According to the National Scouting Report, it is more likely for college scholarships to be awarded to club players since scouts tend to go to club tournaments and showcases that occur several times a year.
High school seasons last only a few months, making it harder for scouts to schedule visits and limiting deserving players opportunities to be rightfully recognized and rewarded.
College coaches also focus their time and budget on club games because they can more effectively evaluate players, as stated by the National Scouting Report. Although scouts have the option to come to high school games, their seasons usually coincide with colleges’ regular season, preventing them from being able to watch high school games and analyze high school players.
This creates an unfair disadvantage to high school players because they do not get a fair chance to impress college scouts and coaches, no matter how impressive their skill level may be.
As reported by the Sports Scholarship Handbook, one in 50 athletes that only play on a high school team receives an athletic scholarship for college. If parents are working to get a scholarship for their children, they should either remove their child from their high school team and instead enroll them on a club team where colleges are more likely to recognize them, or enroll them into both club and high school teams.
Club sports are overall more beneficial than school sports because coaches focus more on individual skills while still building a dynamic and well-rounded team. Club teams also allow easier access for college scouts to attend tournaments, allowing more student-athletes to be recipients of college scholarships.
Club sports are more advantageous than high school sports for student athletes, not only throughout their high school career, but throughout their entire future.
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