It's interesting that IHSA isn't proposing to remove the restriction, just modify it to two non-school competitions per season. I don't see many clubs wanting to take their kids to spring tournaments with players that have only been practicing with their high schools. Think about how most HS coaches would treat players who missed a game or two for a club tournament. Most clubs would probably prefer to just wait and get the whole squad back at one time.

But...

I fear that it's only a matter of time before the best players are playing club year-round and not HS. It's relatively easy for the national programs to take players and get them into tournaments all over the country, and there are plenty of parents who can afford that path (and plenty more who can't, but will).

The top college programs are already putting pressure on recruits to graduate early, even though they begrudgingly acknowledge that there are social-emotional benefits to high school competitions, prom, etc. (Look at the #1 recruit in the 2027 class... she just reclassified as a 2026 to enroll early.)

HS is fun, and competing for a championship is really cool. But from a strictly softball perspective, it's not the best development opportunity for players.

This bill will allow players the "freedom" to play some club tournaments, but in the end it will cost high school sports a lot...