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Bay Area Soccer Association - Bay City, Michigan
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BASA ByLaws Link
The Bay Area Soccer Association (BASA) was established in the Spring of 1995 to offer recreational soccer with the intent to organize a large number of teams for boys and girls between the ages of 4 and 18. The emphasis of BASA is the development of soccer skills and increased soccer competency with age, the fostering of good sportsmanship and teamwork among players, and to encourage parent and community involvement to achieve these goals. BASA's intent is to raise the caliber of the play in Bay County to be competitive with the other tri-city teams, and allow our players to strive for even higher levels of capability if they desire. BASA provides the community an additional soccer skill growth program to compliment the existing public and parochial school programs.
Major Activities, People & Region Served:
BASA offers a Spring and Fall recreational soccer league for youth between the ages of 4 and 18. Currently BASA also offers a travel team for youth playing in the U11, U12, U13, and U14 age brackets. Rec. games are played Saturdays and Sundays at the Bay Area Soccer Association Soccer Complex on Monitor Rd in Bangor Township. About 1900 players were registered in total for Spring/Fall, 2003-2004. A week long youth soccer clinic is offered every July. Beginner coach clinics are offered each season. BASA volunteer staff positions include, Field Layout and maintenance, Coach Coordinators, Player Registration & Team Schedulers, Concession Supervisors, and BASA Board and Steering Committee. The majority of BASA players are from Bay County, but youth from Midland, Saginaw, and Arenac Counties have participated. BASA also sponsors a 3-on-3 tournament each July with players from various parts of Michigan participating.
Glen Erickson founded the Bay Area Soccer Association in the Winter of 1995 then in February of 1995 the State of Michigan approved non-profit incorporation of the Bay Area Soccer Association. The Association became affiliated with the Michigan State Youth Soccer Association (MSYSA) and the U.S. Youth Soccer Association (USYSA). These affiliates are the largest in the state and are the feeder programs for the U.S. Olympic Program in Soccer. Affiliation allows the Association teams to play games in other cities and in the State tournaments. They are also the same organization affiliations of the soccer clubs in Midland and Saginaw Township. In the Spring of 1995 the Association offered its first league play with 74 children forming 10 registered teams. In July a soccer camp was offered and 57 youth registered for training by the professional soccer players from England. By the Fall of 1995 the league was being contacted by teams from as far away as Gaylord for the opportunity to compete against the Bay Area teams. Several games took place between Saginaw Township teams and Bay Area teams both in Saginaw Township and at Bay City. A game was also played against a Pinconning area team. Interest and participation in BASA continued to grow. Each year saw a significant growth in the number of players and the quality of play. By the Spring of 1999 over 950 players had registered to play on recreational and travel teams. During the Seasonal year 2003-2004 over 1900 players registered to play on BASA teams. In the Spring of 1997, just two years after the inception of the league, an effort was launched to build a soccer complex, and move from the temporary home at the Bay City Middlegrounds. The fundraising for the new complex proved to be a monumental task, and languished for 18 months until a three member team of Sheryl Petroff, Bruce Kemmer, and Mike Hanisko took over the effort. The team wrote grants to various charitable foundations, and solicited donations from local businesses. Construction on the 25-acre complex started in the late Fall of 1999 and was completed for the Fall of 2001 season. BASA continues to grow and looks forward to improving the quality of soccer in the Bay County area.
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