There will be a formal try-out process during September. At that time, players will be selected for each team by the team’s coaches. Every player who attends try-outs will receive a phone call to let them know their status.
Based on the tremendous organizational growth we have had in the past four seasons as well as the continued strong interest from the community, we are planning to field at least 17 teams and possibly as many as 20 teams. These teams include both boys and girls teams. We are targeting approximately 10 players per team to balance a quality playing experience with the resource constraints of available court time.
Players will receive game jerseys, game shorts, practice jersey, shooting shirt and warm-up pants. Optional accessory items such as shoes, sweatshirts, jackets and bags, etc. are the responsibility of each player.
We understand that car-pooling and other scheduling constraints may make it easier on families to have friends or neighbors play on the same team, but we cannot guarantee that any special accommodations will be made.
The success of our program is mainly based on the hard-work and dedication of our coaching staffs. We take the selection and training of our coaches very seriously and all of our head coaches and their respective staffs are required to participate in a minimum number of coaching clinics prior to the beginning of the season. During the registration process you will have the opportunity to indicate your interest in serving as a coach and a member of the Board of Directors. You can contact the director of Ravens Basketball directly to get more information.
We will begin regular season practices in October. Teams will have the opportunity to practice twice a week in preparation for the upcoming season.
Coaches will be offered two practice sessions per week. If gym times are available, additional practice times may be used. Each practice session is 1½ -2 hours in length. Later practice times will be assigned to teams with older players. Given the physical nature of the sport, practice time for basketball is very, very important and we expect all players to attend practice.
While there are no minimum playing time requirements, repeated or unexcused absence from practice can result in a reduction of playing time or dismissal from the team. The head coach will determine the amount of playing time the player will receive during the game.
We will continue to utilize various Howard County Schools for our practice sites.
Regular season league games will begin in late November/early December and the season usually complete sometime in early March. The league games take place at various locations around the area, usually within a 1 hour drive of Columbia.
Each coach will determine what leagues to enter his/her team. We find it appropriate to enter leagues where the team can compete, but not dominate competition in order to further develop the player’s skills. The leagues that past Ravens teams have played in include: Howard County, Montgomery County, Pikesville, Catonsville, Arbutus, Western Howard County and Mount Royal.
Each coach will determine what tournaments to enter his/her team. These tournaments may include a pre-season tournament, a Holiday tournament and/or a post-season tournament. The tournaments that past Ravens teams have competed in include: Mount Royal, Pikesville, Howard County, YBOA, Loyola HS, St. Paul’s HS., Greater Glen Burnie, Old Mill, Bustleton, PA., Hanover PA. and many others. We are open to growth and greater selections as our program develops.
We recognize that you may wish to request a refund for a variety of reasons, but our policy encourages early decisions so as to not affect other players or our ability to deliver the programs efficiently. At a minimum, all refund requests are subject to a 20% administrative fee. Additional fees may be assessed to recover costs associated with the specific program. There are no refunds for missed sessions.
All refund requests must be received in writing to the Columbia Ravens Basketball Program at 6030 Marshalee Drive, Suite 121, Elkridge, MD 21075. Each request will be reviewed and, if deemed appropriate, refunded via check from the Columbia Ravens Basketball Program. No refunds will be made via credit cards.
Any payments to the Columbia Ravens Basketball Program made by check that are returned by your bank due to insufficient funds will be assessed a $25 charge.
Columbia Ravens Basketball accepts payment via MasterCard and Visa. We are working on setting up this method of payment via the internet but for current payments, please send in credit card information on the currently designed forms and mail forms to Columbia Ravens Basketball Program at 6030 Marshalee Drive, Suite 121, Elkridge, MD 21075. Any questions, please contact Maureen Sagi at maureen.sagi@columbiaravensbasketball.com.
