Q&A with High School Softball Athletes: Riley & Kaia · Sep 30, 2020

Q&A with High School Softball Athletes: Riley & Kaia

September Player of the Month, a top-notch teammate, a solid father-daughter relationship, an academic inspiration, and our first ever Camp Bellalete Athletes Table Talk...

We asked our April 2019, first-ever POTM, Kaia Glickman, to nominate our September 2020 POTM. Thanks to Kaia, we had the privilege of working with Riley Shubb this month, as our Player of the Month.

Riley Shubb is a 16-year-old middle infielder, whose favorite part of softball is laying out, making a diving catch and then the quick throw.⁠⠀Riley is known for being the first one to pick up a teammate when she is down, for her performance in the classroom, and we think she has some pretty solid words of wisdom for those of you softball Dads out there wondering how to stay balanced and happy with your developing female athlete daughter.

A little background on Camp Bellalete; it started in August. Through the at home time we have all experienced, our goal is to provide continued life lessons, helpful tools, and inspiration for our community. So we basically created a Bellalete House, and it is called Camp Bellalete.

We will Focus on 4 topics:

The Kitchen: recipes, nutrition, and ideas for the sports family
Table Talks: inspirational talks that involve the life of a developing female athlete and her family
Fitness: workouts, workout tips, and more
Self Care: natural beauty, sleep, all things taking care of yourself :)

This month we did the first ever Table Talk with a Q&A between Riley and Kaia....

Kaia: How do you help a teammate that is down?

Riley: At first, I let them be, after they have a minute to settle down I'll go give them a high five and say it is ok, you'll get the next one. Even if they haven't made a mistake I'm always cheering. I think its important to have that loud excited energy

Kaia: What is the best or worst thing a teammate can do for you when you make an error?

Riley: Know what you need as an athlete when you mess up. It is helpful to have your teammates know that too.

Kaia: How can your parents start to give you autonomy as a young athlete?

Riley: Parents, give your athlete time to get in the zone in the car, whatever getting in the zone means to them, it is different for each individual player. Also start to know the balance of when to coach and when to be Mom / Dad.

Kaia: What is most important for you on the car ride home after a game?

Riley: Positive comments! The higher the skill level of the player, the more they know when they make mistakes and don't need to be talked to about it by their parents. For younger athletes its helpful to get little tips on how to fix the mess up or error made.

Left to right: Glenn Shubb, Riley Shubb, Kaia Glickman, Adam Glickman
We are inspired by the dedication, love and commitment these softball Dads and daughters share.

Riley repping the Bellalete Softball Water Color mask.

Kaia and Riley in the new Bellalete Leggings.

Happy Birthday Riley! We celebrated Riley's birthday this month, and launched our Bellalete Birthday Club. You can join, by emailing your name, birthday and a little bio to us at, info@bellalete.com.

Big THANKS to Riley and Kaia for sharing parts of their journey that we hope bring light, positivity and help to all of you. Thank you for reading and following along :)

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