2025-2026 Club Openers/Tryouts

Subzero Volleyball Club is so excited to kick off our 2025-2026 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. Club Opener/Tryout sessions are structured as a mix of drills, athletic activities and small-sided and 6v6 wash drills/games. New in 2026, 13U will have a separate Club Opener in early November to allow them to give Subzero a try before committing to the indoor season.

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. 

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 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.

Team Selection Process
13U 
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. 13U club team registration opens Saturday, November 15, 2025, at 7am. 

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. 

Athletes will be assessed during the Club Tryouts using the following athlete evaluations:

• 14U-15U Athlete Evaluation
• 16U-18U Athlete Evaluation

This process was informed not only by our coach and space restrictions, but by feedback from our 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.

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 two weeks prior to the Tryouts (sooner is better so we can arrange an alternate means for evaluation) 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 selected will also be notified.

4) Athletes who are selected to a Subzero club team will have until December 13th, 2025, 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 15th).

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 2013 (grade 7) register in 13U, players born in 2012 (grade 8) register in 14U... etc.

2026 Indoor Nationals age categories 

Volleyball Canada recognizes the following age categories for indoor competitions in the 2025-2026 season:

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

Schedule - Coming soon!

Some age categories may have two tryout sessions 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 2025-2026 Club Opener/Tryout is $10. All proceeds from this event are used towards the Subzero Athlete Support Fund, which is used to assist those athletes in need of financial support for club season.

Registration:
STEP 1 - Purchase an Open Player membership. All players must purchase an 'Open Player' membership from Volleyball Yukon/Volleyball Canada ($11) before you can register for the Club Openers. 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, 2025 to August 31, 2026. VY/VC memberships can be purchased here: https://volleyball.canada.sportsmanager.ie/sportlomo/registration/member-registration/club/12595

STEP 2 - Check you age category. Please review the 'Age Group' information above to confirm which age category you fall into. If you would like to try out for more than one age category team (i.e. those players born September-December or those who would like to request to play up) please contact us at subzeroyukon6@gmail.com

STEP 3: Register! Please use THIS LINK to register for the appropriate Subzero Club Opener/Tryout. 

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