The first event of 2018 to be live-streamed on FloSoftball will be the Florida Faster2First showcase, taking place January 5-7 at the historic Dodgertown facility located in Vero Beach, Florida.

Following a trio of successful tour stops over the last three months in Mt. Olive Township, New Jersey, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and McKinney, Texas, the Sunshine State weekend of softball will conclude the 2017-18 F2F season and has seen current and future Hot 100 talent and players ranging from the 2019 classes all the way down to the 2024 crop of future standouts.

This event will be exciting to see how strong the talent is in Florida, Georgia, and the surrounding Southeast states, especially.

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Note: space is limited for the Florida Faster2First event. For consideration to be invited, you can call and/or email Faster2First event director Joe Van Valkenburg at 201-741-5390 and jvanvalkenburg@faster2first.com. Register online at Faster2First.

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But the Florida event will be hard-pressed to match the talent in Texas, which included known commodities like shortstop Jayda Coleman, the No. 1 player in the 2020 Hot 100 and an Oklahoma commit who showed why she’s considered an elite talent; speedy outfielder Abbey Smith, a 2021 Hot 100 player and Auburn commit who showcased her great overall athleticism and several future Hot 100 inclusions such as impressive power hitter Krystal Huynh, a 2019 third baseman committed to Stephen F. Austin who hit several home runs; and speedy outfielder Jaya Herring, a 2020 prospect from Tennessee who clinched her Hot 100 status with a great weekend that culminated in impressive performances in games on what was her 16th birthday.

Herring was a returnee who made it to the very first Faster2First camp, which was held in December last year and, in Vero Beach, several other Hot 100 players are expected to attend who also shined at that first event a year ago.

Two to watch for include Taylor Middlebrook, a 2020 3B/SS with the Birmingham Thunderbolts who committed to Mississippi State during that initial F2F camp and wowed scouts and onlookers as she hit several long home runs. Middlebrook, who was rated No. 97 in the first 2020 Hot 100 list, saw her stock soar after her strong play at F2F and in later showcases which helped her jump to the No. 33 spot in the latest Hot 100 for her class.

As to why she attended the event, Taylor said: "I believe I'm one of the best and I wanted to compete with the best!" 

Her mother, Marcia, added, "Taylor loved the Faster2First camp. Everyone on the staff was awesome and it was a great experience all around."

Also confirmed to attend is SS Brooke Blankenship of Tampa Mustangs-Walford, a 2021 commit to Florida State and the No. 2-ranked player in her class. 

Blankenship, who will also be coming with her younger sister, Cait, a 2023 third baseman, said after excelling in Myrtle Beach last December: “Faster2First helped me improve my game by my learning from some of the best in the country and playing along the best in the country. I stay in touch with my teammates from the all-star game and see them at many tournaments. [F2F officials] did a great job of allowing us to get a lot of awesome reps and play in game situations. It was definitely a place that helped my recruiting process!"

Other notable attendees from a year ago included 2021 OF McKenzie Redoutey, ranked No. 8 in the Hot 100 who later would verbally commit to LSU; 1B/OF Avery Goelz of Tampa Mustangs TJ, a 2020 commit to Florida; SS Riley Blampied, also a 2020 commit who is headed to Alabama and perhaps the top prospect in the 2023 class; and Mia Williams, a middle infielder and daughter of former NBA star point guard Jason Williams who has committed to Florida.

What Is F2F?

The F2F Showcase is a nice balance of instruction, competition, and exposure. Over about a 48-hour period, the athletes receive classroom instruction, testing, analysis, development, and evaluation off the field, and then compete in drills and ultimately games against other elite athletes.

The data is recorded and videos and photos are taken to help analyze the athletes' performances and also to be used by FloSoftball for Hot 100 consideration and articles and for college coaches to evaluate for recruiting consideration.

That first event held last December in Myrtle Beach saw players from 15 states attend and come from as far away as California and Texas and featured more than 20 FloSoftball Hot 100 players.

This year’s events have continued to draw players from across the nation — the Texas F2F, for example, saw promising prospects travel from 12 states including ones as far away as California, Washington, Iowa, Minnesota, and Delaware.

Why Attend F2F?

There are many reasons to work out and compete at the Faster2First event. Here are five of them to consider:

1. National Attention: Hot 100 Consideration

Events like F2F are hugely helpful not just for what is shown on the field in terms of position-specific skills, but also the growing importance of athletic testing and measurements.

"We're constantly asked, 'How can I get my player considered for the Hot 100 lists?'" said Brentt Eads, rights acquisition manager for FloSoftball. "The Faster2First format is a great way for us to validate those standouts we know about and thought were Hot 100 caliber while finding new ones who deserved to make the lists."

"Having measurable data that is legit and accurate — like a legit home-to-first time — is a great additional tool to have in helping us select and rank players," Eads added. “And after having gone to four Faster2Firsts I haven’t had one player or parent tell me they didn’t love the experience or learn something that helped them improve their game.”

2. Get Better: Elite Coaches & Trainers

One of the key reasons for the event's success was the on-field directors who come with notable backgrounds of success.

Overseeing the player development aspect of the camp is Rob Crews, considered one of the top hitting coaches in the nation who has worked with MLB teams like the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners, elite Division I softball programs like UCLA, Florida, LSU, and Stanford, and top club programs up and down the East Coast.  

Crews takes the job seriously of evaluating the players at the camp.

"A lot of the subjective evaluations such as hitting to the opposite field, separation in a swing, arm angles, and position specific analysis requires a level of experience to know how to project," he said. "We try to keep the numbers as low as realistically possible in order to get all participants ample amount of reps."

3. The Competition: To Be the Best, Compete With the Best

If you want to play in a major conference such as the SEC, then you need to see what a future SEC player looks like, plays like, and how she does it so you can learn how to do it too.

F2F covers the gamut of education, development, training, exposure and, yes, competition. Sunday, the final day of each event, includes a series of games which are live streamed on FloSoftball.com.

But the event isn’t just about being seen: it’s about gauging where a recruit is and where she need to be — it’s about being the best you can be. A bonus is you'll get to rub elbows with top players in classes older and younger, and hopefully learn how to soon be up there with them. 

4. Great Holiday Gift Idea!

If you as a player have everything you want and need this year — and, sure, maybe a new bat or glove would be nice — or you’re a parent looking for a cool, unique gift idea, what better gift to give than a weekend improving your play on the field?

If softball is your passion, and — for you players — your priority and your favorite activity in the world right now, wouldn't you like to be doing more of it in an exciting and beneficial way?

We have only about a week of shopping, so make it easy on Santa. Let them know you already have your top gift idea figured out.

With Christmas less than two weeks away, this would be the ideal gift request or stocking stuffer for the parent look for the perfect last second gift, which leads to the final beneficial reason:

5. It’s January — In Florida

Sure, if you live in the Sunshine State or enjoy nice weather in the Southeast this time of year, then the weather might not be a big deal, but for you cold weather state fastpitch fanatics, playing softball in Florida this time of year should sound awfully appealing.

And it’s a great way to start your New Year off right, work out at an awesome venue, make new friends you’ll be seeing for years to come on the travel tournament circuit and hopefully into college, and even burn off some of those holiday extra calories you may have added while enjoying too much good food and desserts.

What a way to kick off 2018 on a good foot, and we’ll be there to enjoy it too. Hope to see you in Vero Beach next month!