Softball Games for Girls

Station to Station

• Station to Station is an effective way to warm up prior to a practice game and is a lot of fun. On the softball field, each base will serve as a station. Pair the girls up in teams. Each team starts at station one and proceeds around the bases to each station and finishes at home base, which is station four. Each station requires that the girls perform a different task. At station one, each team must perform five jumping jacks and then run to station two. At station two, each girl swings and hits five balls from a tee. The team then runs to station three, where the girls take turns doing five push-ups. One team member counts while the other girl performs the push-ups. When both team members have completed the five push-ups each, they run to station four. Each girl will swing when the coach pitches the ball, and the teams compete against the clock. The team that completes all four stations with the fasted time wins. This is a practical way to warm up and it gets the competitive energy flowing.

Batting Focus

• Vision training is an important part of softball practice. Girls can improve their vision acuity by focusing on the ball. Write numbers or letters on both sides of practice balls. Write them large enough so that the girls can see the numbers easily. Place all the marked balls in a basket at the pitcher’s mound, and then divide the girls into teams. As the ball is pitched, the batter must call out the letter or number that is written on the ball before or as she swings. The girls score one point for their team when they correctly identify the number or letter on the ball prior to hitting it. For variation, assign a task for each letter or number or draw a large color circle on each ball. For example, a large blue circle means that the player must bunt the ball; a green circle means don’t swing; and a large red circle means hit the ball. Each player must perform the task assigned to the color of the circle on the ball. Each correct action is one point; an incorrect action is an out.

Stick It

• Stick It is an easy and helpful way to improve a player’s throwing power and accuracy. This is an ideal warm-up exercise as well. Divide the team into two teams and pair the players so they face each other. Have one player pitch the ball and the other player catch. The player who will catch the ball must plant one foot firmly on the ground and cannot move that foot from the spot where it is planted.The pitcher then pitches the ball as accurately as possible to their teammate.The goal is to pitch accurately enough so that the catcher does not have to stretch to make the catch. The players all pitch at the same time. Each team that successfully throws an accurate pitch that the other teammate catches, scores one point. If the catcher misses the ball because it was pitched too far for them to reach it without lifting their foot, they are out. The remaining catchers pitch the ball back to their teammates who must then “stick” one foot to the ground for the catch. The game continues until there is only one team left, who are the winners.