It is never too early to start thinking about the snow melting, warm weather, and softball season!! It’s registration time for the 2023 Mount Horeb Vikings Youth Summer Softball Season!

Summer Registration deadline is March 14th.

SUMMER REGISTRATION FEES
Player registration for all ages / divisions = $125 per player

PARENT MEETING 
An informational meeting for parents will be held on:  March 7th at 6:00 p.m. at the Middle School Step Room for ALL U10 and under players, and first year players at any level.  

We will be covering all aspects of the softball club and answering all parents’ questions regarding equipment, expectations and timelines for games/practices.

Any parents of players ages 7-14 as of the end of 2022 (2nd through 9th grade) in the Mount Horeb school district wanting to participate are encouraged to attend, but only U10 and first year parents are required to attend. If we have a similar number of participants as last year, we anticipate the following breakdown at each level: U10 – 4 x teams, U12 – 3 x teams, U14 – 3 x teams.

TOURNAMENT TEAMS
At last August’s tournament team assessments we had a terrific turnout and we were able to form three teams at each level of U10, U12 and U14. Players on the tournament teams practice over the winter and will compete in weekend tournaments around the area.  If your player didn’t sign up for this opportunity this past August and is interested for next year, assessments for 2024 tournament teams will be occurring again the last week of July and/or first week of August (incoming second grade players are not eligible to play on a tournament team). 

PLAYER INTEGRATION
Second grade players will be placed on summer only teams.  At other grade levels, stand alone summer-only teams will be formed where practical and in other cases players will be added to existing tournament team rosters, but they will only compete during the week at summer league games.

LEAGUES
Our summer teams will play in either the Legion Softball League, South Central League, Sugar River League, or the Greater Dane League. More details will be available on league play once we get closer to Spring.
 
AGE LEVELS
Age divisions are determined based on age as of 12/31/2022, i,e. 10 years or younger as of 12/31/2022 will be in the U10 division. This is a policy of the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA) that the Wisconsin South Central Softball League follows. Players may be permitted to play up a division if participant numbers and skill level allow, but cannot play down.

NON-TOURNAMENT TEAM SKILLS ASSESSMENT
This will take place on Tuesday, March 14th between 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. at the Early Learning Center (ELC).  Age group time slots will be sent out 1-2 weeks prior to March 14th based on the total number of players that will be participating at each level.  This will assist the softball board with forming teams that are skill appropriate for your daughter.  **ONLY players that were not placed on teams at the August Tournament Team assessment will attend this March 14th assessment.**
 
JERSEYS / APPAREL
For U10 & U12 players, the jerseys are the same as they were in 2022, so if your jersey fits and is in good condition, no need to order a new jersey in 2023 (keep in mind that your child will likely grow between registration time and summer). Sample jerseys are available at MarkIt (1260 Springdale St, Mt Horeb) if your player would like to try them on. They tend to run small, so we strongly encourage you to stop in at MarkIt before entering a size on the registration form. Cost for re-orders will be the responsibility of the players/parents. There is an option on the registration form to order two jerseys in case you’d like an extra on hand.

U14 players will see a jersey option on the registration form specifically for the U14 level. U14s have their own unique jersey design.

VOLUNTEER-IN-PROGRESS (VIP) PROGRAM 
The VIP Program will be utilized again this year to run the youth season and staff the Troll Tourney on June 23-25 in Mount Horeb.

• The VIP program fee is $100 per player, $200 max per family. At the end of the season, if you have fulfilled your volunteer requirements you will receive a refund.
• There is an option to opt out of volunteering, and payment will not be eligible for a refund.
• For more information, visit www.mohosoftballclub.com/volunteer.
• Players are NOT registered until payment for the VIP Program has been made / received.

NEW THIS YEAR
 In order to streamline the registration process, all payments for registration, jerseys, and VIP are required to be paid on-line at time of registration.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at jeffwmester@gmail.com or 480.639.8638.

Jeff Mester
Mount Horeb Softball Club – Youth Coordinator