Why Y?

The YMCA isn’t the only game in town, but it is by far the largest, non-traveling, recreational league. Soccer mom Michelle McLaughlin and her daughter, Sarah, enjoy the YMCA program specifically because it fits into their busy lifestyle. Because all Springfield YMCA games are played at UIS, Sarah also has time to study piano, participate in her school’s math and science academy and enjoy theater at the Hoogland Center for the Arts. “Somehow we figure out how to make it work,” McLaughlin says.

Erin Cox’s daughter, Grace, plays on the Saltsgavers’ team. “We play with the Y recreational league for fun. We want Grace’s experiences with sports to be fun – learning skills and how to play, making bonds with friends, learning how to take criticism and how to play together as a team and it’s good exercise.”

Saturday morning soccer is practically a ritual for these and hundreds of other YMCA families who bring chairs, coffee, breakfast, umbrellas, whatever the day and time call for; sit together, catch up on the week’s news, cheer for their team, and take turns bringing treats for the players and the little brothers and sisters who play ball on the side, or read and color during the game. And it’s a relatively inexpensive season; by utilizing all volunteer coaches and referees, the average cost of two seasons of YMCA youth soccer (spring and fall) can be held to around $100. Two sessions in SASA (Springfield Area Soccer Association, the other leading league in the Springfield area) cost approximately $500, plus any expenses beyond what’s covered in the basic tuition. “YMCA soccer is cost-effective,” says Erin Cox. Besides the low cost, she says, “We have three children who all play soccer all in the same place.”

Graduating to SASA

For Springfield fifth-grader Gray Freer, playing recreational soccer just wasn’t enough.