All:

Thank you for all of your efforts in getting things ready to start with this year’s Spring soccer season, despite the most recent blasts of winter, the season will be here before you know it.  Before I get started in earnest with the schedules and kickoff info, I also wanted to note that I culled around 100 names from my email distribution.  Those names represent, what I believe to be, outdated contacts.  Soccer Coordinators, do me a favor though and check with your coaches and make sure that everyone received this email so if I pruned the distribution list too much, we identify that early on and I can add someone back in if they shouldn't have been cut.  

Now to the good stuff,  attached to this email you will find brackets and schedules. Please review and let me know if you see any errors.  We ended up scheduling 457 games and typographical errors sometimes happen despite our best efforts. In some respects I'm looking to the 200 or so of you that have remained on the distribution list to be a final copy editor of sorts, so if you see something, say something and I'll fix it right up.

Brackets for Developmental are fairly self-explanatory.  For the developmental program our goal is to get each developmental team 7 games during the 7 week season.  Note that in a perfect world, every team would play another one one time in each of those 7 weeks.  Because our world is far from perfect though that is not the case.  Specifically, scheduling requests often make that impossible.  I did the best I could to spread out games but if you requested three weekends throughout the season off, well, that leaves me with 4 weekends left to get those 7 games in.  So implicit in the bargain that I do my best to accommodate your scheduling requests is that you will play the games that are scheduled.  Also, in the first and first/second grade brackets we had an odd number of teams so one team in each of those brackets ended up with an eighth game inorder for everyone to play 7.  Those teams were chosen at random.

With respect to the JV and Varsity Brackets we had enough teams to do 4 divisions (One 7's division consisting of 6 JV teams and 7 Varsity teams and three divisions of 11's consisting of the MLS, Bundesliga and Premier brackets, each of which consisted of 5 or 6 teams at the JV and Varsity levels).   For JV/Varsity Playoffs we will keep to our long standing 50% plus one formula in deciding how many teams make the playoffs.  That means that if your bracket has 5 teams in it, the top three of each bracket will advance to the post season with the first seed getting a bye into the championship game and seeds 2 and 3 playing a play-in game.  If your bracket has 6 or 7 teams in it, the top four of each bracket will advance to the postseason with seeds 1 and 4 playing and seeds 2 and 3 playing in the semi final matches.  Due to scheduling requests we also have some multi-game weekends, and in some instances, multi-game days, but I did my best to minimize those and when they did occur, to maximize the time in between those games as much as possible.

At the JV/Varsity level brackets are determined in accordance with our league rules, largely based off of a formula that takes into account previous records for the combined JV/Varsity squad and their previous bracket strength.   

If you have any questions don't hesitate to reach out and I will be happy to explain why schools have been placed where they are, but please understand that these determinations are final, and as always, we will rebalance our brackets again for next Fall based upon the results of this Spring. 

Additionally, attached to this email is a listing of contact information for head coaches and soccer coordinators for each school.  Please review and make sure that any necessary parties are listed and listed correctly.  Let me know if there are any corrections. 

Also note the following:

1.      Jersey Colors – Home team is dark, Away team is light.  If the referee determines that the colors are too similar the home team is required to either change their jerseys or wear pinnies.  The coordination of jersey colors is something that should be discussed by the coaches in the email/phone/text change that occurs prior to the games and discussed below.

2.      Confirmation of Game Details – I have attached an updated coach's contact listing to this email.  As we have done in the past, each home coach should reach out to the away coach on or before Wednesday (or two days prior if your game is played before Friday) to confirm game times and locations, directions and jersey colors (see attached spreadsheet for coach contact information).  Please cc the soccer coordinator as well for that school.  The home coach should also share any facility regulations, if any, that the home school or venue is requiring (such as spectator limits, pet policy, etc.).   If the away team has not heard from the home team by Thursday (or one day prior if the game day is before Friday), they should reach out and initiate contact with the home team’s coach and soccer coordinator.  If no contact has been able to be made, please reach out to me.  Be a courteous and respectful guest and remember that whatever regulations and rules that your school employs may not be applicable at someone else’s fields.  If there are compliance issues here, please let me know as I prefer to get ahead of these issues than to let them get out of control.  Also, if the current contact list doesn't include information on a head coach to contact, please send the email directly to the Soccer Coordinator instead until we have identified a head coach.  I believe at this time we are awaiting coaching information still from Ave Maria (JV 7's), Mary of Nazareth (1/2 Grades), and Sacred Heart (Varsity Red) 

3. Referees.  At the Developmental Level, the Home Team supplies and pays for their referees.  If you are in need of referees, let me know and I can put you in touch with our Referee Coordinator who may be able to assist.  At the JV/Varsity Level, we coordinate the referee assignments and the Home teams pay for the JV/Varsity Referees.  The referee fees for JV and Varsity are $45 per ref per game so with 2 referees it is $90 per game so for 4 home games, it would be $360 for the regular season.   Also note that referee fees have held steady for a number of years, but we are scheduled for an increase in fees to $50 per ref per game for the Fall 2023 season so please plan accordingly.

4.  Attendance at away games is not optional – I have heard reports of schools, mostly at the developmental level, opting not to play another school because the drive was too far.  That is not how this league works.  In order for schools to have home games, away games are part of the deal.  A lot of time and effort has been put into this league by me, by you, by our players and our parents; everyone is pulling their oars in the same direction so that the kids get a chance to have fun and learn the sport.  If I hear reports of schools unilaterally deciding to not show up because of travel times or other unapproved reasons, I will look into the situation and react accordingly.  As I mentioned last year, that could include, but not be limited to losing home games in the following season for either that particular team or possibly the school.  In extreme instances it could also result in schools being suspended for a season.  I am hopeful that we don't have any such issues this season though and we can continue to focus our efforts on making this league and our sport better.

5.  Scheduling Requests.  I did my best, there were a lot of requests this year.  In the aggregate some of them became incompatible with one another.  For those that turned in “clean sheets” with no requests, thank you, you are the unsung heros that give me the flexibility to maneuver and make a schedule that accommodates as many requests as we do.  As you review the schedules let me know if you have questions.  

Scheduling requests caused a few issues at the JV/Varsity level such as schools playing the same team in consecutive weeks and even a few instances of schools playing two games in a day (see above for more commentary on that).  These compromises are not ideal, but they were necessary in order to accommodate the scheduling requests and get the games in during our allotted season.  

We had more problems at the developmental level because we have 7 weeks to get 7 games in and we are working around conflicting schedules for cross county, volleyball, musicals, etc. (see above for more detail on that as well). Also, there are instances where schools with multiple teams in a bracket requested a black out date and I have them playing each other on that date with the understanding that the schools can make that game up with their two squads whenever it is best for them.  You will also note that there are more double header games than we typically have in a season.  This is a direct result of trying to accommodate all of the scheduling requests that we received.  

If additional requests come since the time that your registration was delivered you will need to work those out with the opposing team (see below for reschedule procedures).  All games should be played.  Schools have registered with the understanding that they will get to play at least 7 games at the developmental level and 8 games at the JV/Varsity level. At the JV/Varsity level, at best, unplayed games will put you at a disadvantage for league standings and depending on the circumstances, could result in forfeit wins (2 points instead of 3) and forfeit losses (-2 points instead of 0) being allocated.

6. Reschedule Requests– Games can only be cancelled and rescheduled due to weather and due to Diocesan and School events.   

i)                For Developmental Games, the coach/coordinator for the requesting school should reach out to the coach of the opposing team with the request and cc the opposing school's coordinator and me.  Both parties need to agree to the rescheduled day and time.  If one school is being uncooperative, let me know.

ii)                 For JV and Varsity Games, the coach/coordinator for the requesting school should reach out to the coach of the opposing team with the request and cc the opposing school's coordinator, me and Chuck Pruss (Chuck is cc’d on this email and his email is in the schedules).   Both parties need to agree to the rescheduled time.  No alternative time is final until Chuck can confirm that he is able to provide referee coverage for the alternative time.  If any schools are using Chuck to coordinate referees for developmental games, they should also follow this notice protocol.

7. Webpage– With respect to the JV/Varsity games those schedules will be loaded onto the webpage.  Please refer to this schedule until such time as we have updated the webpage, please be patient, we are volunteers with day jobs so we are all doing this in our free time and will get it uploaded as soon as we are able.  As always, each coach should be making contact with the opposing team to verify game details in advance of the game.  Relying solely on either this schedule or the webpage can result in errors– in almost every instance of teams showing up on the wrong days/locations/times, it is directly attributable to coaches not confirming with one another game details in advance.

Finally, here are a few more points as we go into the season:

• Registration Fees are overdue. Fees are $125 per team. The check is payable to Diocese of Pittsburgh and sent c/o Rob Glentzer at 116 Wickerham Drive, Mars, PA 16046
• Rosters are due for all teams – Developmental, JV, and Varsity – by March 23rd and should be delivered via e-mail. Please properly scan and/or attach the document. Improperly scanned documents or unreadable/partial pictures will not be accepted. Preferably a soccer coordinator can send all of the rosters for all of their teams. Jersey numbers for JV/Varsity should be listed on the roster.  Roster forms are attached to this email.
• Two (2) Game Cards should be used for all JV and Varsity games – one is for the opposing coach and one is for the referee. Other documents will not be accepted. Call up players, e.g. JV playing up on varsity should be added to the game card for the game.  Results of the game are to be posted online using the webpage or QR code by the winning team (or, in the event of a tie, the home team).  A picture of the results, roster and yellow/red card information must be included or the results will not be official.  It is best to upload this information immediately following the game.  I have attached a sample game card and they can also be found online
• Below is a quick summary of some division specific information, but please consult the rules (attached hereto) for a more detailed listing:

 

Division	Grades	Ball Size	Game Length	Field Size	Format	Goal Size	Heading	Slide Tackle
Jr. Developmental	1 & 2	3	50 minutes	¼	5v5	6×8 or 6×12	No	No
Developmental	3 & 4	4	50 minutes	½	7v7	6×12	No	No
JV	5 & 6	4	60 minutes	Full (shorter field for 7's if possible)	11v11 or 7v7	8×24	No	No
Varsity	7 & 8	5	60 minutes	Full (shorter field for 7's if possible)	11v11 or 7v7	8×24	Yes, but not punts or goal kicks	Yes, but not from behind and contact with the ball must be made first

 

• Let’s remember sportsmanship and not run up the score. If you are up on a team by 4 goals you should start to implement measures to make the game more competitive.  You could instruct your players to pass more, playback and practice your build up, have your players shoot with their non-dominant foot, pull off a player or two, or ask the team if they would like to add a player or two (if the ref consents).  It is ok to want to win, and the players that work hard and are the better team that day deserve the win.  But it is also important to teach them how to win (and lose) with grace. Teams that win by 8 goals or more will be flagged for review and the results for that game could be set aside by the commissioner, in my sole discretion.  Repeat violations of this rule may result in the offending school being sanctioned with the loss of home games in the current or future season.
• We are a co-ed league, all coaches should be playing boys and girls in an equal manner and doing what they can to encourage the development of all players.
• Last, but not least, please remember, we are doing this all for the kids.  Let’s keep and maintain a safe environment for them and set good examples for them throughout the season.  

 

That’s all, if you've read this far, congrats, hopefully this is the longest email I will send all season.  Play safe and I hope you all have a great season this year.

Rob Glentzer

DSL Commissioner