i9 Wants to Get Your Kids in the Game

Parents looking for a way to get their children active in sports without having to commit to nightly practices might find i9 is right up their alley.

The nonprofit youth league offers a variety of fall sports programs that are playing host to open registration right now. Soccer, flag football, basketball and cheerleading are among the opportunities with available slots in Central Pasco.

“Registration is open for everything but hockey and T-ball,” said Jimmy Barbarise, the league director for Pasco County. The hockey clinic and T-ball signups will open up later in the year. Dates haven't been set yet.

The league operates separate programs in Land O’ Lakes, West Pasco and East Pasco. Teams are designed for developmental rather than competitive play. This means everyone gets a chance to learn and to be on the field during games. Scores are kept in most sports, and winners and losers are proclaimed. All players, however, do get trophies, and there are even championship games.

Developmental leagues, Barbarise said, provide youth the chance to develop skills without the pressure of getting cut from a roster or having to warm a bench.

“We’re not a win-at-all costs (program),” he said.

Players in the i9 leagues range in age from 3 to 16. Most sports have practices only once or twice a week. In fact, most leagues feature game-day practices, which means parents and children only need to commit to one day a week to participate and play combined.

Parents, by the way, are asked to help teach their youngsters good sportsmanship. This means they also have to be good sports as they’re watching the games, Barbarise said.

“(There’s) a parental pledge they sign,” he said.

The cost to play is about $115 a child, which includes games, trophies and uniforms. Barbarise said there’s no additional fundraising involved.

This fall season’s games get started on a staggered schedule. Flag football starts Sept. 23 in Land O’ Lakes, with baseball getting under way Oct. 22. Soccer also starts Oct. 22. Information on T-ball and the hockey clinic will be available later this year.

Land O’ Lakes practices and games take place at the and the , depending on the sport.

For more information, visit i9sports.com.