My child plays soccer and baseball. Will there be a conflict?
We work very hard to schedule our league between the two sports. Our practices start in December after the AYSO season is over. Since our season is completed by the last weekend of February, we are done before spring soccer starts and before baseball tryouts. This is based on last year's schedule and current information we receive from those leagues, although we cannot control what these sports do this coming year.

I notice this league is run through Eastern Hills Baptist Church. Do I have to belong to your church (or any church) to participate?
Absolutely not. We use this sports league to serve our local community. We welcome all children to our league regardless of religious affiliation (or no church affiliation)

Why do you have an evaluation night for players? Don't all players get to play?
The reason that we have an evaluation night is so that we can create equally balanced teams. It's no fun for anyone if there are teams that are significantly better than others. Upward provides a great computer program that takes the information we gain from evaluation nights and then indicates to us how the teams should be formed. Although it is not perfect, we have been successful in creating teams that have been equally weighted in talent and coordination so that all players can succeed with their teams.

Do all players get equal playing time?
Upward's system works well with giving players equal playing time throughout the entire season. Based on the roster order, which is established at the beginning of the season, players are substituted according to the order, not by the coach's discretion. With six periods of play, it allows more playing opportunities as well. Based on this system, a child may get less playing time in a given game, but will have more playing time in another game. Also keep in mind that factors, such as sick or injured players, will affect playing time as well. However, the control is within the system, not the coach.

I have more than one child that is interested in playing. Can I sign them up for the league?
Yes. When you sign up, our computer system will attempt to schedule your children on teams that have different times for practices and games.

As a parent, may I coach my child's team?
Absolutely! Check the box on the registration form and come to the coaches' clinic. Each team should have at least two coaches, so there is always a need for more parents and friends to help. No, you don't have to have experience in coaching basketball.

Can my child play both basketball and cheerleading?
Yes, and we will do our best to make sure there are no conflicts between the basketball team and cheerleading.

Can my daughter/son cheerlead for my other child's basketball team so I can make one trip to the gym?
Probably not---there are always fewer cheer teams than basketball teams so in order to allow all teams the opportunity to have cheerleaders for their game we rotate the cheerleading teams around.

My child has never played basketball/cheerleading before. Will he/she be behind during practices and games?
No, last year nearly 35% of our league had never played organized basketball before. Our focus is on teaching basketball so we are able to help each child develop to a higher skill level then they started with.

Can my son participate in cheerleading?
There are no prohibitions for boys signing up for cheerleading. They will receive shorts with their registration instead of the advertised skorts.

Why is there a different price between the basketball and cheerleading?
The price is dictated by the national headquarters and is based on the cost of items included in the registration packet. The cheerleading packet includes pom-poms and a skort in the $60 fee. Basketball has a t-shirt and jersey but no shorts. If a basketball player wants shorts they can pay an additional $13 for them. We do not require the purchase of shorts to participate.

My child can't do gymnastic flips and mounts for cheerleading-is that a problem?
No, we do not use gymnastic routines in our cheers.

What kind of time requirement is involved with Upward Basketball and Upward Cheerleading?
There are 11 practices starting in December and 8 games starting in January. Each practice and game are both 1 hour long. We start all games promptly at the top of each hour so there is no delay getting your game started.

When will practices be scheduled?
Each child will have a single one-hour practice each week. These will be scheduled on any day between Monday and Friday. Practices are scheduled at 5:00, 6:00 and 7:00. We try to put our 1st and 2nd graders at the earlier times but this is driven by the number of teams we have.

Can my child play on the same team as his friends from school?
We allow each child to designate one carpool link with another child on their application. If the other child reciprocates on his/her form then we will link the two children together. Please do not put more than one carpool link on your form as we only accept one. This allows us to prevent unfair teams during the team formation.

What if my child has other activities during the week? How do I avoid scheduling conflicts?
We allow each child to designate on their application one day of the week they can't play basketball. We will make sure they do not play on that day. Please do not mark more than one day as the computer will only accept one date.

Do cheerleaders need to go to evaluation night?
There isn't a formal evaluation night for cheerleaders. However, we encourage you to come to evaluation night to try on the sizing uniforms. We allow you the flexibility to come on any of the evaluation nights.

How long are the games?
Time from player introduction to end of game snack is one hour.

Will I play at the same gym each week?
Game schedule is driven by number of teams in each of the leagues. More than likely your child's team will play at the same gym.

Will I play at the same time each week?
No, the league will play at the same time but the teams rotate around during that time bracket. We try to schedule games between 9:00 and 4:00 but this will be dictated by the number of teams we have in the league.