How to Earn Wrestling Scholarships for Girls

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It is harder for students preparing for college to find wrestling scholarships than for other athletes. There are fewer schools with wrestling programs and, therefore, fewer awards available. The competition is stiff for boys and girls. The number of student wrestlers is growing ever year, particularly for girls programs. Sponsorship opportunities and grants are still hard to find. When seeking college scholarships, female wrestlers in high school should turn their attention to universities that are building their programs and have the appropriate academic major of interest.

Breaking Ground
In many cases, females still face the difficulty in overcoming the stigma that it is a boys' sport and may have a hard time being accepted by some coaches or schools to an all-boys team. This means that girls who want to make a future of wrestling in college and earn wrestling scholarships must prove themselves both on and off the mats. Turning to colleges that welcome female athletes is an easier road to participation and funding. Decent grades, good fitness, a strong record, school spirit and a coachable personality are all traits that will attract the attention of a scholarship committee. The number of girls who want to wrestle has grown exponentially over the past 25 years. The United States Girls Wrestling Association (USGWA) had 247 young ladies compete in its first national tournament, held in 1998. There are now more than 6,000 competing in the national tournament. The 2004 Olympic games gave a recognizable boost to interest in the sport when women's wrestling was officially added to the international competition.

Getting Noticed
For coaches and committees considering eligible team members and selecting recipients for girls wrestling scholarships, there are several ways that students can help themselves get noticed. Participation in wrestling tournaments at any level is helpful, with video footage and newspaper clips included for demonstration. Letters of recommendation from coaches and teachers are important endorsements.

Attending summer camps for wrestlers is a definite way for athletes to get noticed by coaches and athletic directors. Girls as young as middle school age can participate in camps designed to help them improve technique, conditioning and knowledge. In this setting, they are able to train with other girls in their same weight class, age and skill level – something that many local programs are lacking due to the smaller number of female participants. Standing out in camp can help students get on the radar for potential athletic scholarships in college.

For young ladies in high school hoping to pay for college, it is possible to get sponsorships and grants from local businesses. Gyms may sponsor young wrestlers for local, state and national competitions. A growing number of gyms, athletic apparel and fitness centers are sponsoring females. Before accepting any assistance, students should verify the present rules with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), rather than jeopardize eligibility.

There are many colleges and universities actively recruiting female wrestlers to bolster their teams. They are offering scholarship opportunities to those enrolling as freshmen, but also to transfers. This is an opportunity for kids with lower grades to improve them to 3.0 or higher at the local community college, then apply for wrestling scholarships for girls as a sophomore.

Source by Jeremy P Stanfords

Simple and Easy British Bulldog Soccer Warm Up Game

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Soccer British Bulldog

A simple game of Britist Bulldog using footballs as a warm-up exercise.You need between 10 and 20 players for this game

  1. Mark out a pitch size of 20 yards square.
  2. Divide the players, with 15 at one end of the square, all with a football leach and 5 in the middle of the square without a football.
  3. Each player with the ball has to advance from their side of the square to the opposite side, dribble the ball at their feet as they run towards the other end.
  4. The players without a ball in the middle of the square have to tackle the players with the ball and kick the ball out of the square.
  5. A player who loses his ball then becomes a player in the middle who now has to tackle the ball from the players with the balls.
  6. When a player gets to the end of the square successfully with the ball he has to wait until instructed to run again.
  7. As more and more players are tackled, then there are more and more tacklers.
  8. The winner is the last player with the ball at his feet.

This exercise is used as a warm-up game before the session starts. It promotes tackling and also close ball control and skill. The players also benefit from closing down the opponent with the ball and using their strength to hold the opponent up.

All the players love playing this game as it pits their skills against their opponents. In traditional British Bulldog, there is always a concern that a child could get hurt, but because this is soccer and the players are practicing the discipline of football, they are much less likely to suffer and injury, even less so than during a match.

We use this game in our club on a regular basis, not every session, but every 2 or 3 sessions and it goes down really well with the players.

Source by David William Webb

Spilling the Football in the 4-3 Defense

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Today, most Defensive Coordinators will tell you that they are a spill team. That means that they want to keep the ball going sideline to sideline, and prevent it from cutting up the field.

Every defense uses the principle of a "Contain player" as well. The contain player is the player who stops the spill. In our 4-3 Defense, we say that everyone in the defensive front is a spill player, and one player (to each side) is the "box" player.

The box player, quite simply, boxes the play and forces it back to the inside. That's in a perfect world, of course.

Many coaches use the term, "Force" player instead of "Contain" or "Box" because they want that player to force the ball to change direction in some way. Either the ball carrier needs to turn back to the inside, where help is, or he needs to bubble the ball back to try to go around the force player.

If the ball carrier is forced to bubble back, that gives the pursuit from the inside a chance to get there. It also means the player is closer to pinning himself to the sideline. The sideline is the 12th Man in any football defense.

The 4-3 Defense is a true spill defense. Each player on the defensive front 7 is responsible for the inside half of his assigned gap. He should almost run into the blocker that is to the inside of his gap responsibility.

We call this "squeezing the air out" of the gap. Think of when you put something in a zip lock bag, and squeeze all of the air out before you seal it up. By taking all of the space out between him and the inside player in the gap, the ball is forced to, at the very worst, continue outside of him.

As the players squeeze the air out in the 4-3 Defense, we are building a wall of defenders for the ball carrier to maneuver. There should be no place for him to turn up the field. Even the slightest crease can result in disaster. It takes just one player failing to squeeze the air out, and we could be in trouble.

If each player does his job in building the wall, the ball will continue outside of the spill and eventually run into the contain player, or box player. The box player in our defense is normally the Strong Safety or Free Safety to the play side. We use a Quarters Coverage to get both safeties involved in the run defense and create a 9 Man Front.

The final piece of the puzzle is the deep defenders. If we are using Quarters Coverage, we have a 9 man front, and two defenders who must always stay over top of the # 1 Receivers. These are the corners.

Any defender who is responsible for a deep zone of the field, or who is locked in man to man coverage, can not be counted on for your run fits. He is not in the spill, nor is he the box player. Our corners have the job of taking away trick passes, play actions, and other plays where the wide receivers could pose a threat even after the offense shows run.

Source by Joe R. Daniel III

An Overview of Basketball

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Basketball is the most popular indoor game played around the globe. And everyone is having fun watching intense play offs between two teams trying to beat each other. This is also an art which they considered as an air ballet. Indeed, this is the sport that players will astonish you with their high jumps while trying to twirl in the mid air to shoot the ball.

This sport is played between two teams, each of 12 player and a coach, with 5 players from each team allowed on the court at any one time: 2 forwards, 2 guards and a center. The team with the most number of points at the end of the game is declared as the winner. To get points the leather ball should be propelled through a basket. Two baskets are fixed on two backboards situated at the end of the court. The ball is moved by passing from one player to another or by dribbling it, never by kicking or by carrying it more than one and a half steps.

Moreover, violations committed by the players will be called by the referee. The game violations include personal fouls and illegal moves. 5 fouls disqualify a player from the game. And the coach can substitute the players on the bench for players who are disqualified, injured, or tired. At the same time the coach calls timeouts, advising the team on tactics on how to outsmart the opponents.

The goal of each team is to win the championship. And every spectator is thrilled to witness if what team will reach the finals in each season of NBA. National Basketball Association (NBA) is indeed the solid crowd drawing equivalent of professional leagues in other sports. And Clippers is one team that everyone should look out for. Clippers tickets are already in the market for purchased. Early bird promotion is offered so you can have your clippers ticket at a reasonable price. You can buy Clippers tickets online or at the nearest store.

The games schedule can be checked through the internet. Do not miss the fun and take a glimpse of your favorite players live in court. Be there and enjoy!

Source by Eloy Perry O Bass

Boxing Gyms and How to Survive Them – 3 Golden Rules

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Golden Rules to Survive Them AND Learn How to Box!

Being an active, competitive boxer requires that you attend one of the many boxing gyms scattered throughout many towns and cities across many countries all across the world. Even in those countries where professional boxing is banned (for example Norway and Sweden), there are a wealth of well-run amateur boxing gyms where the skills and techniques of the noble art are taught for a very reasonable price. To learn how to box is really one of life's cheaper pursuits (assuming the cost is not measured in blood, sweat and tears of course).

It being the case then that there are many boxing gyms and it will only be by a quirk of geography, a lack of desire to box competitively or some medical-type reason (for example acute agoraphobia) that might prevent you from joining one of the community boxing gyms to learn how to box, I wanted to write a short article to provide 3 simple rules to observe if you are about to cross the threshold of a local boxing gym in your area.

Without further ado, let's go over the simple considerations that will allow you to cope with the new environment of the boxing gym and learn how to box in double-quick time.

Rule 1:

Do not feel the need to go and spend piles of cash on sparring gloves, head-gear, boxing boots and so on. Keep it simple in the short-term. You will need as a minimum training clothes and shoes, boxing wraps and shower gear. That's it. You do not even need in the short term to buy bag gloves or a skipping rope as the gym will provide these. As time passes and you make a decision as to whether you like being around boxing gyms, you can spend your dollars on the bag gloves, skipping rope, boxing boots and gum shield. All other gear will continue to be provided by the gym.

It is worth understanding that you might want to avoid buying gloves for sparring as the coach will often want to assess their suitability to be used in his or her boxing ring. On a number of occasions I've had to disappoint boxers by refusing to allow them to wear their freshly imported and eye-wateringly expensive gloves for sparring because of the lack of padding in the knuckle area. A boxing coach's primary responsibility is to the safety of the boxers, so they will not mind at all leaving you with a very, very expensive pair of bag gloves rather than allow those gloves into their sparring ring where the risk of injury to one of his or her boxers will increase.

Rule 2:

When you join, do not feel upset that the coach does not immediately welcome you to the gym with open arms and spend every waking moment bestowing their knowledge upon you. The reality of most boxing gyms is that the coach is very, very busy and time is always a commodity they need more of. Whilst being flat-out busy is not an entirely acceptable excuse for ignorance, there is a much more understandable reason for them to, as you see it, disregard your considerable efforts and focus on others. The reason is quite simple really, they are testing you.

In the boxing gyms of yester-year, the number of young Dempsey wannabes wishing to don the gloves and throw themselves into the sport probably outnumbered modern patronage by at least 10 to 1. Back in the day, when insurance policies were less fear-inducing to those who ran the boxing gyms, the main method used by coaches to gauge the commitment of hopeful pugilist was to throw them in the ring with very limited instruction, against an experienced opponent, and allow the beating to play out. After a few nights of such a systematic thumping, if the hopeful kept showing up then their desire to fight was no longer in doubt and the coach would honour them with some advice and guidance … everybody's happy.

These days boxing coaches have to be a little more considerate when showing prospective fighters how to box. The most efficient (and least blood-thirsty) way to measure the commitment of an individual in the boxing gym is to ignore the guy. In fact, many coaches appear to go out of their way to totally blank new boxers. If the hopeful just keeps on turning up with their kit bag over their shoulder, then they have proven themselves worthy of the attention of the coach and their journey to boxing greatness begins.

Rule 3:

Watch and Listen. This might seem like obvious advice, but it is very important. It goes without saying that you must listen to and follow the instructions of your coach. It is also worth considering that in some cases challenging what the coach says often brings benefits as it demonstrates an inquisitive mind. Be careful how you approach this though as depending upon the coaching style of your coach he or she might well appreciate the debate unless of course they use a more authoritarian approach, in which case you could well find yourself in the midst of a storm of press -ups.

As importantly though, watch the other boxers in the gym. Boxing gyms have a varied mix of skill and experience levels among the fighters. As a novice, watching the more experienced and skilled boxers when they shadow box, spar, work the heavy bag, or anything else for that matter, will help you learn how to box more quickly. Success breeds success. Be warned though, do not make it too obvious otherwise you might give the wrong impression, if you know what I mean. Ask for advice from the boxers themselves. Boxing gyms are a melting pot of learning and generally all are considered equal. In my experience boxers tend to be very giving in their guidance to less experienced gym buddies, so make the most of this and soak it up like a sponge.

So there it is, 3 simple rules that will help you to flourish in any boxing gyms that you venture into. Keep these tips in mind, and you'll not only survive, you'll truly thrive.

Source by Fran Sands

Baseball Coaching Digest: 12 Strange Examples of Baseball Lingo

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Baseball is a great sport. It truly is America's Game. Baseball coaches and players know and love the game. They even have their own language, lingo or jargon. This article takes a look at 12 strange baseball terms and phases and their meaning. You will enjoy this inside look at the game and the lingo that is spoken.

Baseball Coaches and Players have many "sayings" and jargon that may seem extremely strange to a lay person that is not familiar to the game.

Here Are A Dozen Examples of Strange Baseball Jargon

1. Air Mail – Used to refer a fielder's wild throw that is thrown high over the player to whom he is throwing the ball to. For example, if the shortstop were to throw the ball over the first baseman's head and into the dugout, he is said to have "air mailed" the throw.
2. Aspirin Tablet – Slang for a fastball that is especially hard to hit due to its velocity and / or movement. When a batter is in a slump the ball appears much smaller. Means the opposite of the saying that "I am seeing the ball so well that every pitch looks like a grapefruit or beach ball".
3. Baltimore Chop – A technique of hitting that utilizes a short downward swing. The purpose is to make the ball bounce off home plate or the packed dirt in front of the plate. The goal is to produce a bounce high enough so that, even if the ball can be fielded by an infielder the batter will reach first for a base hit.
4. Banjo Hitter – A batter who lacks power. The name is said to come from the twanging sound of the bat at contact, like that of a banjo. A banjo hitter usually hits blooper singles, often just past the infield dirt, and would have a low slugging percentage.
5. Bread and Butter – Refers to what a player does best or what the players relies on to be successful. A player's greatest or most reliable skill. For example: "The slider is a pitcher's bread and butter pitch."
6. Bush League – Used to describe play, actions or behavior that is considered to be of poor quality or unprofessional quality. The "bush" refers to occurrences in rural small towns and communities.
7. Can of Corn – A fly ball that is easily caught. It is believed that the phrase came from the act of a general store clerk reaching up, tipping and catching cans from a shelf to fill a customer order. The reason a can of corn was considered the easiest "catch" because in those days the can of corn was the most popular vegetable sold in a can so the cans of corn were heavily stocked on the lowest shelves.
8. Cement Mixer – A pitch fails to break and ends up hanging in the strike zone; an unintentional slow fastball with side spin resembling a fixed-axis spinning cement mixer, which does not translate. It is a pitch thrown with the intent of breaking it out of the strike zone but it failed to do so.
9. Climbing the Ladder – A technique or strategy by which a pitcher throws several pitches back-to-back out of the strike zone, each higher than the last, in an attempt to get the batter to "chase" or swing at a pitch "in his eyes."
10. Daisy Cutter – Refers to a hard-hit ground ball that stays just above the grass and close enough to the grass to theoretically be able to cut the tops off daisies that might be growing on the field.
11. Humpback Liner – Used to describe a ball hit deep in the infield that has a trajectory in between that of a fly ball and a line drive. While not the hardest hit, these types of balls can be hard for infielders to get to if they are not in double-play depth. These type balls often fall in for hits, but the extra topspin on the ball makes them take a dive before they can get to the outfield.
12. Went Fishing – The batter reaches across the plate in an attempt to hit an outside pitch. He chased a pitch that was so far outside that he could not reach it. It is often said that batter "went fishing".

As you can see from reading the examples above sometimes baseball people speak a different language. I hope that you enjoyed this article and found it to be informative. You can find more articles like it at the Baseball Coaching Digest and the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Thanks for reading my article. Have a great day, Nick.

Source by Nick Dixon

The 5 Basic Skills Needed to Play Softball

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Playing softball competitively or recreationally requires a set of basic skills which include catching, throwing, fielding, hitting and base running. A dedicated softball player must take time to practice the right techniques in the following skills in order to confidently and safely play the game. Even seasoned softball players must continue practicing and drilling themselves on these skills in order to improve their performance.


The right catching skills allow a player not only to catch the ball without getting hurt but also to position him to throw the ball precisely. The fact is that catching and throwing are two of the fundamental defensive skills in softball. The ability to catch and throw a ball is very important as this enables a player to throw out a baserunner who is attempting to advance to the next base.


As previously mentioned, throwing is one of the two most important defensive skills a player must learn in softball. A quick and accurate throw can make it hard for the opposing team to advance their runners or make a score. Softball players should practice the right throwing technique in order to hit their targets quickly, precisely and consistently.


Fielding is another essential defensive skill that a softball team must master. Good team fielding makes it difficult for the opposition to score runs. Players are drilled on the right way of fielding a ball that is hit on the ground as well as in the air. Fielding drills also involve knowing where to throw the ball. Many times fielders must rehearse particular plays so they will know where to throw the ball if it is hit to them.


Hitting is probably the most challenging and enjoyable skill to learn in softball. Hitting a small ball with a rounded bat out to a particular area – in the split of a second – is a technique that softball players must continually practice and perfect. A good hit requires hand-eye coordination, quick reaction time, right technique and confidence.

Base Running

Excellent base running is not just about speed, it is also about smart running. Even more important than simply moving around the bases is the wisdom to evaluate the current game situation. A wily base runner takes into consideration the number of outs and the fielding placements of the opposition. Fast and smart base running puts great pressure on the defensive team.

Softball with In, where running and sliding are On Often done, a good pair of softball cleats and a trusty pair of supportive, moisture-wicking softball of socks are On essential items.

Source by Tim A Barth


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Source by Maria Mountain

Golf Cart Battery Cables Exposed – Does Size Really Matter?

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Source by Randy Wade

Three Simple Ideas for a Small Town Bowling Alley to Increase Profits

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Bowling is a sport enjoyed by millions worldwide. Like many businesses in past few years bowling alleys have been hurt by our nation's economic downturn. It is imperative for small town bowling alley owners and managers to properly market themselves and update their amenities in order to stay profitable. It is not enough for a bowling alley to solely offer bowling. Instead they need to start thinking of themselves as family fun centers if they want to remain current and increase profits. In this article I will offer a few suggestions on what small town bowling alleys can do to attract customers and maintain positive customer relationships. None of the individual recommendations are going to drastically increase a bowling alley's revenue. However, a blend of all of these should generate significant growth, when operating at optimum level.

1. Selling your lanes

If a center has 15 lanes then there needs to be 15 advertisements from local businesses hanging over the lanes (preferably at the end of the lane). You would be surprised at how many businesses are willing to do this on a yearly basis for a small investment. Here is how this is achieved: Call the institution with which you bank, your accountant, real estate agent, food distributor, and any other business that the bowling alley works with on a routine basis. Tell them that you will give them a year of advertising for a set price of $ 1000. Out of that $ 1000 dollars you purchase the signage and net the rest. The reason why the signage is purchased out of that fee is so that the owner can decide the dimensions of the sign. If all 15 lanes have a sign over them, then a center will gross $ 15,000 before you purchase the signage. All this for doing nothing more than providing people you work with on a daily basis with a place to advertise.

You can also do something on a smaller scale with the ball sweeper. Ball sweepers are located at the end of each lane and they sweep the pins following each roll.

2. Arcades and prizes

In an effort to make the bowling alley more of a family fun center, arcades, redeemable prizes and kid's birthday party packages are necessary. Kids can burn through tokens very quickly, so including tokens for video games in the package is money for the center. If a bowling alley does not have video games or redeemable prize machines in their center, they need to get them, and quickly. The more you can pack into the center, the more cash the bowling alley will receive. But where can a center go to get video games to put in their center? Video game distributors can provide games, redeemable prize machines, jukeboxes and even ATMs to bowling centers for practically no cost and maintenance free. Once a week, a representative for the distributor counts the money in the machines, token distributor and / or ATMs. Once the money is counted they split the money in half with the bowling alley! For little cost and almost no hassle, the business can attract a lot of people with video games for kids to play either after bowling or during a party. Additionally, games and machines are switched out every few months to add excitement and entice potential players. As a result, the bowling alley takes in a substantial amount of cash with little effort.

3. Night life and adult birthday parties

Alcoholic beverages and bowling go hand and hand. It is rare to see league bowlers not have a beer or two while they are rolling. Yet, why can not the bowling alley offer a night life to adults? This is especially relevant in small towns where there might be a lack of fun after dark. If space is available, bring in a DJ and clear a spot for a small dance floor and the crowds will come. Offer to do adult birthday parties at night and give the party goers drink specials. Also, adults like to play video games, especially if they are with their friends and having a good time. To make sure responsible drinking is being adhered to the owner and manager may need to provide security to ensure safety and the ability to properly handle a rowdy situation. If this measure is in place, the center will draw the right crowd night after night.

Doing these three things is relatively inexpensive, requires little work, and is ultimately very profitable. Incorporating one of these things into a bowling alley that is not currently doing any of the three will increase revenue. If a center can fold all them of them together then there is huge potential for greater profits.

Source by Joshua H Rivera