Pat Milich
The early bird catches the worm and when it comes to Bocce in PebbleCreek, only the early bird is assured a spot on a team in one of the Night Leagues that have steadily grown in popularity over the past several years.
If you have not yet registered for the fall 2017 Bocce Season, I’m sorry to tell you, you are not one of the early birds! Since the Spring Season ended in May, early registrations for the upcoming Fall Season have been encouraged and a significant number of team captains and individual players have been turning in registrations over the summer months.
As of the July 13 deadline for the August PebbleCreek Post, the Thursday Night League was full and there was room for only six additional teams in the Tuesday Night League, according to Bocce Association Treasurer and Team Registrar Mollie McErlean. Due to HOA regulations that require lights at the Eagle’s Nest Bocce complex be turned off by 10:00 p.m., there can only be one tier of competition scheduled in the Night Leagues, limiting the total number of teams to 16 each night.
The Bocce Association also has two Day Leagues, on Wednesday and Friday, when up to 32 teams can be scheduled each day, due to the ability to schedule two tiers of competition.
As participation in Bocce continues to grow as high as 711 players per year, scheduling has become a complex and time-consuming responsibility and Mollie encourages anyone who wishes to participate in the Fall Season to please get their registrations into her as soon as possible. Early registration forms may be turned into Mollie until September 3. She can be contacted at 623-935-2822 or at [email protected]. Registration fee is $20 per league per year. The $20 covers the fall, winter and spring seasons.
Final registrations will be accepted on September 5 and 6 from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. at the kiosk in the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse. Registration ends on September 6.