If I lived on Long Island the choice would be simple. One club continually is among the top 2-3 clubs and is always competitive when traveling down here. It's really rather simple. You get better playing with and against the best.
A MD parent [/quote]

Yes, YG is the top LI club. But what if your daughter is on the B, C, D, E or F team? And . . . the B team is better than most. The choice is . . . do you want your daughter to play or simply be on the best team? Being on the best team doesn't necessarily make your daughter better, especially if she isn't playing.

Some other LI organizations have top teams at various age levels - some that can compete - not necessarily win vs YG, and some really poor teams at other age levels. Find a good coach - who knows the players and stays with the team year after year, and a good core group of girls that stay together, and that team will compete with most top teams. Keeping 20 girls on a roster should be able to offset the 4 or 5 that leave each year.