You Must Be Cleared! - Please have your parent or legal guardian go online to www.registermyathlete.com to register you as an athlete. By the first round of tryouts you must be registered, which requires getting a physical along with signing other documents. Please call your Dr. ASAP to make an appointment or contact Wilson Chiropractic (805-643-4176), which does them quick and at a good price.
 
In regards to selecting my teams, I always have to make some tough decisions. I am looking for highly motivated and coachable student/athletes. I typically select 12-15 students to make the team, so please make sure that you are trying out for the right reasons and that you will be able to commit to your fellow teammates, coaches, and the school.

Please realize that there are a very limited number of spots available and depending on the position(s) you play, there may only be 2-4 spots to fill. If you are chosen for this team, be proud and ready to work hard. Should you not make the team, thank you for all of your efforts and don’t stop playing the game. There will be other opportunities for you. Many students go on to make their high school teams after being cut from the Balboa team. As well, for 6th graders I select a small group of students to be practice players that are encouraged to come to as many practices as possible which greatly improves their chance of making the team the following year.

What to Expect Should You Make the Team - Once we have finished tryouts and I have selected our boys and girls teams, we will be having pre-season practices 2-3 times a week depending on our progress. During this time, the players will be expected to participate in our annual Free-Throw-Athon to help raise money for the program, which gets zero funding from the school or district itself. During the months of December and January we will be playing games on Tuesday and Thursday nights and having 1-2 practices a week after school. For our home games, there will be a schedule going around for each family to provide an adult scoretable and snack bar volunteer. We will need two per game at the scoretable and one at the snack bar.  After the league games are played we will start the playoff tournament during the last week of January or the first week of February depending on the schedule. We will finish the tournament on a Saturday in early February (This is the only weekend we will be playing).

From the beginning of tryouts to the end of the season, you will be expected to compete to the best of your ability and to maintain a positive attitude, which will dictate whether or not you make the team as well as how much playing time you get if you do make the team.  During close games I may use a 7-8 player rotation, leaving 4-5 players with little or no playing time.  As well, during “blow out” games, the starters can expect to sit most of the game, allowing other players to develop and improve their game. Maintaining a positive, team first, attitude is essential for your, and the team’s success.

It is extremely important that you communicate to me as soon as possible when you will not be able to make a tryout, practice, or game. When it comes to picking my players and deciding on playing time, I don’t just look at how good you are on the court. How you choose to represent yourself, teammates, coaches, and school on and off the court is extremely important as well!

Coach Anter
larry.anter@venturausd.org