2024-2025 Club Openers/Tryouts

2024-2025 Club Openers/Tryouts

Subzero Volleyball Club is so excited to kick off our 2024-2025 season with our annual Club Opener/Tryouts. Please read all of the following info before proceeding to the registration link.

What is it?
The Subzero Club Openers/Tryouts are the venue for team selection for all club teams except 13U (13U teams have an open registration). They are also an opportunity for athletes to meet coaches and prospective team mates, and to give Subzero a try before committing to the indoor season. Club Opener/Tryout sessions are structured as a mix of drills, athletic activities and small-sided and 6v6 wash drills/games.

Why a Tryout?
Subzero has a limited number of coaches and gym availability and an increasing demand for participant spots, requiring us to cap team size. We have also received direction from Volleyball Yukon to move to a Tryout system this season.

Subzero’s general philosophy is to make our age category cohorts as large as is manageable. Taking into consideration the reality of coach resources and practice space limitations, Subzero strives to develop as many athletes as possible, in order to maintain a healthy youth volleyball community. That said, there is a limit to the number of athletes that can be included, and this will vary between teams and from year to year. For example, coaches play an integral part in determining the number of athletes they will take on in any given season and there are a limited number of gyms that can accommodate groups larger than 12-14. Our goal as a club is to provide optimal playing and development experiences and meaningful competition for as many athletes as we can accommodate, while still maintaining a high standard and ensuring the success of our club teams. Many of our younger age groups train a larger cohort which comprises 2 teams. To ensure a quality experience for all Subzero players during the 2025 season, the Subzero Board has recommended a maximum of 24 players per age cohort with 16-20 being optimal (example: an age cohort with 2 teams, and a total of 20 players training together). For those cohorts with a single team this maximum will be lower.

Process
13U Coed
Coaches will use the 13U Club Opener to better familiarize themselves with the skills of this group, but club season registration for 13U will be first come first served. There is no tryout for 13U.

14-18U
1) Subzero will post a draft list of available teams, number of athlete spots for each team, coaching staff, and a preliminary practice schedule in November, following the Subzero Coaches’ meeting.

2) ALL athletes wishing to participate in the Subzero club season (including returning athletes, those that did not play competitive volleyball in the previous year, or athletes from another club) must attend the Club Openers/Tryouts. Requests for an exemption must be sent to Subzero (subzeroyukon6@gmail.com) at least one week prior to the Tryouts and include the reason(s) for doing so.

3) At the conclusion of the Tryouts, coaches will meet to select the optimal mix of athletes who will work together as an effective team and contribute to team success.  The Board will send a notification to those players invited to register for the club season. Those players who were not successful will also be notified.

4) Athletes who are selected to a Subzero club team will have until December 11th, 2024, to accept their offer and register for their team. If additional spots are available after this they may be offered to shortlisted athletes (no later than December 14th).

5) For 13U athletes there is no selection process and registration is open.

This process was informed not only by our coach and space restrictions, but by feedback from our 2023-2024 post-season survey. Please note that we have coordinated with Heat Yukon Volleyball Club to ensure there is no conflict with tryout times. Players are welcome to try out for both clubs if they wish.

Age Groups
Subzero follows Volleyball Canada's age groups as shown in the chart below. Players must register in their age category. The Subzero Board will consider requests to play up prior to the Club season. See our Playing Up Policy for additional information. Players born in September to December have the option to play down, as they fall into two different age groups. As a general rule, players register with their school cohort i.e. players born in 2012 (grade 7) register in 13U, players born in 2011 (grade 8) register in 14U... etc.

*Note - 18UB team may select up to four overage (19U) players, per Volleyball Canada's guidelines.

Schedule - All sessions held at Porter Creek Secondary School December 6-8, 2024. 

** For 15UG, 15UB, 17/18UB, and 18UB (if necessary) two tryout sessions have been scheduled. Players are not required to attend the second session, but are strongly encouraged to do so as we anticipate a large number of athletes for these age categories.

Fees

The cost of the Subzero 2024-2025 Club Opener/Tryout is $10. All players must also purchase an 'Open Player' membership from Volleyball Yukon/Volleyball Canada ($11) in order to participate. You may have already purchased a VY/VC membership if you participated in our Back to School Camp, fall Game Night, Serve and Pass clinics, or registered for tryouts with another volleyball club. The VY/VC membership only needs to be purchased once and is valid from September 1, 2024 to August 31, 2025.
VY/VC memberships can be purchased here: https://volleyball.canada.sportsmanager.ie/sportlomo/registration/member-registration/club/12595

Please note, players who register for Subzero's club volleyball season will need to upgrade this membership to a "Youth Competitive" membership (an additional $40) once club season begins.

Questions?

Any questions, please contact us at subzeroyukon6@gmail.com

Registration for our Club Openers/Tryouts will open in November 2024. Follow us on Instagram to be the first to know!