WEATHER POLICY - in case of inclement weather

IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER
It is the policy that when weather creates a challenge to attend league or tournament games, the Director of CYO Athletics, in consultation with that sport’s commission members decide as early as possible on the cancellation of such events.

• In cases of severe weather, we will either cancel all games for a day, entire weekend or do it on a gym by gym basis.


• If athletic events are cancelled, the games will not be made up. If games are played during a cancelled day, they will not count in league standings.


• All cancellations will be posted on the CYO Athletics voicemail message at 206.654.4643 as quickly as they are determined. If your gym/field is not listed as closed, it should be open.


• Information will also be posted to our blog for CYO Athletics if that is possible.


• Please be aware that we will not respond to phone calls asking us if games are being played at a specific gym. All gyms are open unless communicated otherwise.


• Due to different weather conditions in various areas, CYO Athletics suggests all adults use common sense during difficult days of travel.
  

FOR COACHES WHOSE TEAM CAN’T MAKE IT TO A GAME DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

• If the gym you are scheduled to play at is not closed and it is determined that you cannot travel safely to your game, you are asked to call the opposing coach to notify them of your need for game cancellation.


• Coaches contact information will be sent out next week so please contact your AD to contact the opposing team's AD until that information can be entered and distributed.


• We are asking that people call at least 2 hours before their game time so that people can plan accordingly. Please have team phone trees in place to enhance communication on both sides of this situation.


• Please communicate this to CYO Athletics by calling Tauno Latvala on his voicemail pager at 206.344.9119 so that officials are notified of the game cancellation.


• The 72-hour notification rule is still in effect for non-weather related cancellations. Please see the CYO Athletics manual on p. 25 for more details.
  
  

2011-12 Basketball Schedules Posted

The 2011-2012 CYO Athletics Basketball Schedules are posted. You can follow This Link and select Winter 2011-2012 - Basketball 2011-2012 to find your division and team.

Please note that this year there was only 7 teams registered in 8th grade girls JV, and to avoid St. Francis having 2 Byes in an 8 game/week season, St. Luke will play a double header the last weekend of the season. We have not done this type of scheduling for basketball in recent history, and we hope to have at least 8 teams per division in future years, but simply could not work around it this year with only 7 teams register in 8th grade girls JV.

BB Coaches Meeting November 9

This Wednesday, November 9th, the first of two pre-season basketball coaches meetings will primarily take place at the Isaac Orr Conference Room at 910 Marion St. Seattle. The meeting will go from 7:00-8:30pm, and there will be a Play Like A Champion Today (PLC) coaches training course that follows from 8:30-11:00pm.

We are also trying new Web-Meeting technology, that allows us to show the powerpoint from the meeting and have the audio from the meeting at a satellite site. This Wednesday, the satellite site will be Lakeside HS (NOT the Middle School), in the Kent-Evans Auditorium. Click Here for a campus map.

Please note: There will not be a PLC training offered at the satellite site, and coaches that need the training must come to Isaac Orr on Wednesday.

2011 Soccer Playoff Brackets

2011 Soccer Playoff Brackets will be posted on the CYO Athletics website by Saturday evening, after we receive all the scores from Saturday morning regular season soccer games.

Champion Committee Resource

Coaches and Parents can find a new resource for parents we posted on the Parents page of our website. At the bottom of the page, you will find a link to this outline of a Champion Committee, an adapted version of the committee described in the Play Like A Champion Today Coaches Manual Appendix G.

PLC Training 8/28 at Sacred Heart CANCELLED

Unfortunately, we have to cancel the Play Like a Champion Today ® (PLC) training scheduled for Sunday 8/28 at Sacred Heart. We needed a minimum of 15 coaches to register for the training, and we only have 9 coaches signed up. Coaches will need to visit our website and plan to attend a different training. Here is a link to the website:

http://seattleoyyam.org/programs/cyo-athletics/coaches/play-like-a-champion

We are sorry for the inconvenience this causes.

PLC Trainings This Weekend

There are two Play Like A Champion Today (PLC) trainings scheduled for this weekend. Saturday, August 27th there is a training at St. Catherine in Seattle at 9:00am. This training has more than 15 coaches registered and will not be canceled. There is of course still space available for any coach who wants to attend this training.

The second training is Sunday, August 28th from 1-4pm at Sacred Heart in Bellevue. Currently there are only 6 coaches registered for this training. We will need 9 more coaches to register before tomorrow morning or we will have to cancel the training. If we do cancel the training, all registered coaches will be notified via e-mail, and this blog will be updated. To register for this training, please use this Registration Form and send to cyo@seattlearch.org.

2011-2012 CYO Athletics Calendar

The 2011-2012 CYO Athletics Calendar has been approved, and is posted on the front page of our website under Online Resources, or can be found by clicking here.

AMHS Volleyball Camp

Previously sent out, AD's received Summer Camp information from Archbishop Murphy HS for Volleyball Camp July 21st-23rd. As a point of clarification, this camp is open for both boys and girls ages 5th-7th grades. Here is an updated flyer and registration form.

Baseball Playoff Brackets 2011

Baseball Playoff Brackets were sent out to the coaches, but are also posted on the website here.

Viaduct Closures - Saturday May 14th-16th

For those families traveling to Southwest Complex for the All-Comers and Individual Championship Meets on Saturday, May 14th, please note the following closure of the viaduct and make alternate travel plans:

Viaduct weekend closure to re-stripe lanesSections of the viaduct between Seattle's sports stadiums and the West Seattle Bridge will be closed to traffic while crews re-stripe the roadway, reducing it from three to two lanes.

Portions of SR 99 will remain closed until noon, Saturday, May 14Both directions of SR 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and the Battery Street Tunnel will be closed from 11 p.m. Friday to noon on Saturday.

Portions of SR 99 will reopen at noon, Saturday, May 14Northbound SR 99 will reopen between S. Royal Brougham Way and the Battery Street Tunnel at noon on Saturday, May 14.

Portions of SR 99 will remain closed until 5 a.m., Monday, May 16All lanes of southbound SR 99 between the Battery Street Tunnel and the West Seattle Bridge will remain closed until 5 a.m., Monday. All lanes of northbound SR 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and S. Royal Brougham Way will remain closed until 5 a.m., Monday.

Pete Fewing Soccer Camp Next Week

Pete Fewing Soccer Camps will be providing their Catholic Spring Break Soccer Camp again this year during the week following Easter, April 25th through April 29th at Lower Woodland Park. Click here for registration information. Space is still available.

*Please note, this organization is independent and is not part of the Corporation of the Archbishop of Seattle. They are not sponsored, directed, administered or managed by the Archbishop of Seattle, pastors or archdiocesan staff.

Last PLC Training for 2010-2011 School Year

Next Tuesday, April 19th, following the Pre-season Track & Field coach meeting, CYO Athletics will be providing the final scheduled Play Like A Champion Today coaches training for the 2010-2011 school year. The Track & Field coach meeting is scheduled in the Isaac Orr Conference room from 7:00-8:00pm and the Play Like a Champion Today coaches training will follow until around 11:00pm.

There will be coaches trainings scheduled again near the end of August in preparation for the soccer season and the 2011-2012 school year, but coaches who need the training prior to next year are encouraged to come next Tuesday, and get the training done sooner rather than later. Coaches coming to the training, who are not coming to the 7:00pm Track & Field coach meeting, should plan to arrive at the Isaac Orr Conference room by 8:00pm.

2011 Volleyball Playoff Brackets Posted

Click Here to find this year's CYO Athletics Volleyball Playoff brackets.

April 1-4 Full Closure of I-405 in Downtown Bellevue

Crews plan to close all freeway lanes in both directions between NE 8th Street and SR 520 the weekend of April 2-3 to remove the old NE 12th Street Bridge. Crews must close the freeway because they can’t safely take down the bridge while traffic passes under it. With nearly 450,000 vehicles traveling this route on a typical weekend, the closure is Washington State Department of Transportation’s biggest this construction season

CYO Athletics families, please plan accordingly.

Baseball Schedules Posted

Click Here to find this year's CYO Athletics Baseball Schedules. The divisions were smaller than in years past, and we had to do some unique scheduling tricks to try and give each team 1 counting game against each other team in their division, while still trying to schedule 7 or 8 games in total for each team. Here are the details for each division in that regard:

5th/6th National• There are only 6 teams in this division, and because of this there are teams that play other teams twice.
• Only 5 games will count in this division.
• If you only play a team once, that game will count.
• If you play a team twice, the last time you play them will be the counting game, and the first time you play them will not count.
• Top 4 will go to playoffs.
• Call in your scores each week, but we will only post scores for the games that count so the standings reflect these stipulations.

5th/6th American• There are 9 teams in this division. Since this is an odd division some teams will play 7 games due to a bye, and one will play 8.
• Regardless of the amount of games you play, only seven games will count.
• If you play 7 games, all your games count. If you play 8 games, your first game does not count.
• Top 4 will go to playoffs.
• Call in your scores each week. The system is built to deal with a division like this already, as it is a pretty standard division.

7th & 8th Grade Divisions
• These divisions look bigger than they are. Each division looks as though it has 12 teams in it, when in fact the National division has 7, and the American division has 5 teams.
• In order to avoid multiple byes, cross-over games were required between divisions.
• The teams are identified as such. A National team has a (N) after the team name (EX: St. Louise (N)). An American team has a (A) after the team name (EX: University Prep (A)).
• In situations where an American team plays a National team, that game will appear on both the American schedule, and the National schedule. There are not two games, but rather it is the same game. Our system is not built to have division cross-over games so placing all twelve teams in each division, and having the same game appear twice was the only way we could do it.
• In the National division, only the games against the other National teams will count. Therefore, there are 6 counting games.
• In the American division, only the last four games of the season against the other American teams will count. Therefore there are 4 counting games.
• The top 4 teams in the National will go to the National playoffs.
• The top 4 teams in the American will go to the American playoffs.
• Call in your scores each week, but we will only be entering the scores for the games that count so the standings correctly reflect what should and should not count.
• Below are the teams in each division, to alleviate any confusion on how many teams were entered.

7th/8th National – All these teams will be identified on the schedule with a (N) after the team name.
Bush
Our Lady of Fatima
St. Francis
St. Joseph Seattle
St. Louise
St. Luke
University Prep

7th/8th American – All these teams will be identified on the schedule with an (A) after the team name.
Holy Rosary Seattle
Our Lady of Guadalupe
St. Catherine
St. Joseph Seattle
University Prep

Volleyball Schedules Posted

Click Here to view this year's volleyball schedules. It is also best practice to re-check the schedule the night before your game, to confirm that there have been no changes. If CYO Athletics ever has to move a game, we will do our best to notify the coaches involved, but any game change will always be posted on the schedule, and that is the best most accurate way for all our parents to know when and where games are.

Coaches Meeting and Training Canceled Tonight

Greetings~

As you might expect, the current weather is wreaking havoc on our efforts to hold our 2nd volleyball coaches meeting tonight. Outlying areas are already receiving considerable snow that will make driving conditions less timely if not downright dangerous. Additionally, most recent predictions are that the Seattle area will be getting snow during the commute hour of 5-6pm with a let up until the approximate time frame we would be completing our meeting this evening. This combined with temperatures dropping to freezing can all make for hazardous driving conditions across the region.

In light of this, we have postponed tonight’s volleyball coaches meeting and Play Like A Champion Today training until next Wednesday, March 2 at 7pm at Isaac Orr Conference Center. We will still offer the Play Like A Champion Today coaches training to follow the meeting next week as well.

We realize that some of you may have needed to take the coaches training prior to coaching this weekend, but coaches will be granted an exception for this weekend due to the snow that canceled tonight's meeting and training. You may coach this weekend without the training, with the understanding that you will attend the training next week prior to continuing coaching this season, if you need to take the training. Coaches therefore could also attend the Play Like A Champion Today training on Tuesday March 1st following the baseball coaches meeting, and be in compliance with the policy.

Prior to this weekend's games, if you are not familiar with the scoring for volleyball, you can go to the WIAA website for information and also review this powerpoint. Please disregard the information on “libero” since we don’t have that position in volleyball in CYO Athletics.

Also, in order to be in compliance with the Washington state Lystedt Law, you need to view this video every year before coaching in a sport. We show this video at all our coaches meeting, but if you come to the meeting next week, you will need to watch it on your own before coaching this weekend.

We look forward to seeing those of you who did not attend the mandatory coaches meeting last Tuesday at next week's meeting.

Free Tickets to Seattle U Men's Basketball

Seattle University has given Vouchers for FREE tickets to the CYO Athletics community for next Tuesday's men's basketball game at Key Arena. Seattle University will be playing UC Davis at 7:10pm Tuesday, February 15th. Print off vouchers, and redeem for tickets outside Key Arena on game day at the East ticket window.

1 Million 4 NOLA this Sunday

In CYO Athletics, we are proud to be a place where winning off the court is more important than on the scoreboard. It is for that reason that we are excited to share an opportunity during basketball championships to live out Gospel values both on and off the court.

ONE MILLION 4 NOLA, asks people to shoot a free throw and to donate one dollar to help the families of New Orleans move home. One player from each team will shoot a free throw to connect with this effort. There will also be an opportunity for fans to shoot a free throw on site at Bishop Blanchet High School this Sunday, February 13. For more information on the cause, please go to the website at http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=m4j5lzbab&et=1104374190226&s=0&e=001Jlsn9mJJseDFdK3YE0iRNNigwUdKtgNN_U6vAfaASQZdpugxayu41V-YDr2SO89DmLul3OmgOw2C697ncuyhJ6psDlBkurAOSlf4U9TGyHRun3-PAQngCA==

FREE WEBINAR: "Getting Parents on Your Side"

This Webinar seemed fitting as we begin our CYO Athletics volleyball seasons, and we wanted all of you to be made aware of this opportunity.


Active Network, Sports is teaming up with the Positive Coaching Alliance to present a FREE webinar on February 10, 2011: Getting Parents on Your Side: Setting effective expectations for parents to gain support for your organization and their child.


Register today!


To create an alliance with parents and gain their support, you need to understand them and identify common goals. Through understanding and a shared vision, you will be able to get parents' full buy-in of your organization, as well as encourage healthy support of their child.


This webinar includes an interactive Q&A and covers how you can get parents on your side, ensuring a positive experience for your players, parents and coaches. Specifically, how to:
· Set expectations for a positive Parent Culture
· Establish a positive coach/parent relationship
· Redefine the term "winner" and fill the emotional tank
· Honor the game and reinforce appropriate parent & fan behavior

Positive Coaching Alliance is a non-profit organization whose mission is to transform youth sports so all athletes have a positive, character-building experience. In this webinar, you'll hear from PCA experts and learn how to set expectations with your coaches to ensure better experiences for you and those involved in your sports organization.


Attendance is limited, so register now!

When: Thursday, February 10, 2011

Time: 1pm - 2pm Pacific Standard

Cost: Free

After registering you will receive a confirmation email from Active Network Sports containing details on how to join the webinar.

*Please note, this organization is independent and is not part of the Corporation of the Archbishop of Seattle. They are not sponsored, directed, administered or managed by the Archbishop of Seattle, pastors or archdiocesan staff.

St. Louise Gym and CYO Athletics Basketball Playoffs

Just a reminder that efforts have been and are continuing to be made to keep the gym at St. Louise sanitized since the school was closed on Friday.

At this point, and at any time during the flu season, it is important to follow the good health habits as described in the previous blog post of Friday, February 4 and outlined on the Washington State Department of Health website.

In addition, to make some of those precautions more sports specific, athletes:

1. Should hydrate regularly but not share water bottles;
2. Should keep themselves dry and clean but not share towels or other items;
3. Should not handle food without first washing or sanitizing their hands;
4. Should not wear their uniforms for extended periods of time after playing;
5. Should not play immediately after recovering from illness;

Blessings during playoffs and championships!

St. Louise School Closed, but Playoff Schedule Remains Unchanged

Greetings CYO Athletics community,

It came to our attention today, Friday, February 4 that St. Louise school was closed today and again Monday due to a significant occurrence of flu. At this point, estimates are that 25% of the community had been out of school at some point this week due to this illness.

We understand the following to be true:

1. In these cases, closing the school is as much or more about limiting the exposure of the school community to one another as it is to the facility;

2. The St. Louise maintenance staff is using this time to sanitize surfaces that students come into contact with, above and beyond normal daily cleaning;

3. This is flu season so that it has been making its rounds around many communities in Western Washington: the virus is not exclusive to St. Louise;

4. Simple precautions can assist in preventing the spread of the flu no matter where you are and what you are doing - as indicated on Washington State Department of Health website: http://www.doh.wa.gov/FluNews/flufacts.htm#basics:

Good Health Habits
Protect yourself and others--use good health habits

Take these simple precautions to help prevent the spread of flu and other lung and breathing (respiratory) diseases:

• Get a flu vaccine every year.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or your upper sleeve, not your bare hand.
• Use a tissue to wipe your nose, then throw the tissue away.
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand gel or disposable wipes.
• Stay home and away from others while you or your family members are sick.
• Wear a mask to cover your face in a medical office, if asked.

As always, we would ask members of the CYO Athletics community to use prudence in making decisions. We would especially encourage those who have been sick with the flu or been exposed to it keep in mind how their decisions affect other people. Practicing the good health habits above should assist in keeping people healthy. However, we cannot guarantee that players or others will not be exposed to the virus in any gym or facility in which playoffs are taking place during this time.

At this time, playoff brackets will remain unchanged as a result of this issue. Thank you.

Tauno Latvala
Director of CYO Athletics

Volleyball Coaches Clinics

The volleyball coach clinics now have locations. The Beginner's clinic scheduled for Saturday, February 12th will be at St. George from 9-1:00. The Advanced clinc scheduled for Sunday, February 13th will be at St. Joseph in Seattle from Noon to 4:00. Information regarding CYO Athletics Volleyball may be found on the volleyball page on our website.

2011 Basketball Playoff Brackets Posted

The 2011 CYO Athletics Basketball Playoff Brackets are posted HERE.

2011 CYO Athletics Volleyball

We have updated our volleyball website with a new score sheet that doesn't include the "libero" since we do not use a libero in CYO Athletics.

Also, we have finalized the dates for our volleyball coach clinics - Beginner's Clinic on February 12th and Advanced Clinic on February 13th. Please check back to see where they will be located, right now we are still finalizing the locations.

Remember: CYO Athletics Volleyball Team Registrations are due to Ross Brownell by this Friday, January 28th. Team Registrations should be sent in by the parish/school Athletic Director and the form can be found on the Athletic Director page on our website. Registrations received after the deadline will not be accepted. Parents interested in registering their children should contact their parish to see if there is any more room to sign-up.

Voucher for FREE SU Men's Basketball Tickets

Seattle University Men's Basketball plays Eastern Washington University on Thursday, January 6th at 7:10pm at Key Arena. As part of our ongoing relationship with Seattle U, the CYO Athletics community has been given vouchers for FREE tickets to this game. Click Here for the voucher, print, and bring with you to the East ticket window outside Key Arena.