Registration Information

Welcome to the St. Columba CYO Basketball Program, servicing parishioners from St. Columba, Blessed Kateri, and St. Denis. We look forward to working with your child on learning the fundamentals of basketball, the challenge of competitive sports, and the values of a Christian community.

Registration for the 2011-2012 season is now open for our in house and travel programs. 

• Please download the on-line registration form, 
• print one form for each child being registered, 
• fill out the form(s), 
• and mail them along with your registration fee to the address at the bottom of the form.  

In House Program - Grades 1-4

We offer beginner and instructional divisions for grades 1 through 4 because we believe in the importance of building skills and providing repetitive practice at these ages. 

How divisions actually end up is driven by the number of registrations we receive at each grade level. The following reflects how the in-house program was structured last year based on the registration numbers.

1st Grade: We again will offer a beginner division for 1st grade boys and girls. We are excited about this division as we see it as an excellent introduction to our program.

• The goal will be to offer exposure to fundamental basketball skills in an age-appropriate and fun manner.
  
• Clinic size will be limited in order to give individual attention. 
  

2nd & 3rd Grades: Grades 2 and 3 will make up the instructional in-house division. 

• The initial focus here will be skills and fundamentals-
  
• gradually leading into game exposure with an instructional component.
  
• These games will be refereed with modified rules in effect in order maintain the benefit of instruction.
  

4th Grade: Our 4th grade instructional modified travel  teams will be scheduled to play against other parishes in order to prepare players for travel the following year.

• The initial focus is on skills and fundamentals, with in house scrimmages to support game sense.
  
• After December, they will travel to a few area parishes to compete, but with modified rules to support ongoing instruction and building confidence.
  
• THESE TEAMS WILL MOST LIKELY PRACTICE ON WEEKNIGHTS AND SOME WEEKENDS BASED ON AVAILIBILITY OF GYMS. ONCE THEY BEGIN GAMES IN JANUARY, WEEKEND PRACTICES ARE DIFFICULT TO SCHEDULE.
  

In all the in-house programs, coaches are encouraged to work with players developmentally throughout the season. Our goal is to challenge each player at his/her skill level and individual placements may be adjusted as determined by the coaching staff.

Please consider volunteering to coach in the instructional division. This is a collaborative coaching division, and we need committed parents. Training can be provided. We are in need of 3 volunteers for coordinating:

• the Beginner Division (grade 1), 
• the Instructional Division (grades 2-3), 
• and the Modified Travel Division (grade 4). 

Please understand our commitment to instruction at the younger grade levels is due to what we have observed when children are pushed ahead. "Competitive" play for younger children often results in a loss of inherent fundamentals. Not learning these fundamentals will put players at a disadvantage as they grow older. We encourage learning these basic skills at an early age to provide a framework for many years of enjoyment and success in the future.

So When do we Play?

The in house programs will start in late October and end in late February. Once you have sent in your registration there is no further need to contact us about the start of the season. You will be contacted when we know the logistics of the season. Expect to be contacted by October 19th at the latest. Please provide a working e-mail address on your registration form to receive a confirmation that we received your registration and you will be all set. The in house program starts after the travel program has been settled in.

Practices or clinics are held on Saturdays or Sundays at St. Columba or another area gym beginning in October. We do not know what time slots will be allocated for specific teams or clinics at this time.  You will be contacted through email and/or your coach regarding start dates. Additional practices may be scheduled on weeknights for the grade 4 teams, depending on gym availability. Games for the instructional division begin in January.   

Travel Program

Our travel program competes with other Dutchess county parishes, representing the best in play of all towns in this area. “A” teams are more competitive, and only one team is formed for each grade division. “B” teams afford more flexibility. The number of teams is determined by having a sufficient number of players, league availability, and competitive levels. “B” teams have now replaced what used to be our Intramural program for grades 5-8. We can not emphasize enough here that availability of teams from other parishes in these divisions plays a big role in whether or not we can end up fielding a team in a particular grade and division and we will not know the rest of the league make-up (nor ours for that matter) until some time after try-outs have been completed.

Players are selected during two tryouts scheduled in September or October (see tryout schedule available here). Attendance at both tryouts is preferred, but players must be at one in order to be placed on a travel team. We must have a completed and signed registration form for you prior to you being allowed on the court for a tryout. There are no exceptions to this rule! 

Please note. We believe both the A and B leagues offer quality basketball opportunities. If you choose to tryout and our evaluating coaches place you on a team, we expect you will play on that team.  If you choose not to play, you will be subject to a $10 fee.

Please be registered in advance of the first try-out. Late registrations at the try-out takes away from the actual try-out time for the children and gives the coaches less of a chance to evaluate them.

WE ENCOURAGE ALL PLAYERS IN GRADES 5-8 TO ATTEND BOTH TRYOUTS SO COACHES CAN DETERMINE APPROPRIATE PLACEMENTS FOR BOTH THE A AND B TEAMS.

"A" teams have 10 players. "B" teams need at least 10 players and may have as many as 12 players. Practices are held once a week in area gyms. There is a deposit required for uniforms. Registration fees are more than our instructional program due to the higher cost of league play.

Travel teams will have one regularly scheduled practice during the week. Games will be on Saturdays and Sundays. You may have weekends where you have a game on both Saturday and Sunday but usually that is not the case. Teams are all local in Dutchess County so you will not have to travel far. In some cases tournaments, if any, as well as post season play, if you do well enough, might be a little further away.

Travel Teams are offered at the “A” and “B” levels for the following grades:

Please note: Teams are contingent on tryout numbers, talent level of available players, and availability of county play.

Practice times and gym assignments are not known at this time. We cannot begin to determine the gym assignments until after we know our registration numbers. Gym time is at a premium and we are very thankful for all the gym time that we do receive.

CYO Basketball is a volunteer program, and we are in need of adults willing to assist as coaches, assistant coaches, and various other capacities. Please visit the Parent Volunteer Information Page for a description of the volunteer positions. Please let us know what you can help with on your child's registration form!

If you are interested in coaching, at any level, please visit the Coaches Information Page. Thank you.

If you provide an e-mail address on your registration form, you will receive a confirmation that we received your registration from registration@stcolumbabasketball.net within a few days.  Please add this e-mail address to your contacts so we will end up in your in-box and not your spam folder.  This is especially important for AOL e-mail users!

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