Eligibility

• Open to boys and girls in grades 5–8 — no prior experience needed!

• Athletes must either:

  • Attend a Catholic school in the New Albany Deanery, or

  • Be a registered member of a Deanery parish.

• Playing on a public school or rec league team as well? Participation is allowed, but players should get approval from their other coach first to make sure there are no scheduling or policy conflicts.

• Teams are organized into four leagues: 5/6 Girls, 5/6 Boys, 7/8 Girls, 7/8 Boys

• If a parish enters multiple teams in the same league, a B Division may be created as needed.

Registration

• Registration is handled individually by each parish.

  • Please contact your Parish Athletic Director for deadlines and sign-up instructions.

• If your parish does not offer Middle School Basketball, we will help place your athlete on a nearby parish team.

  • Contact Raymond Zoeller at raymond@catalystcatholic.org for assistance.

Schedule

• Practices – Each parish sets its own practice schedule, usually 1–3 times a week depending on the team. Practices typically last 1–1.5 hours.

• Season – Runs from October through mid-December, with games on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays.

• Tournament – The season wraps up with a Deanery Tournament in mid-December! Teams are seeded based on their regular-season rankings, and the official bracket is released after the final regular-season game.

• Transportation – Parents provide rides to practices and games.

• Coaches’ Discretion – Coaches may adjust playing time based on things like attendance, effort, or injury concerns.

Rankings

Standings are updated throughout the season and posted online.

• Teams are ranked by win/loss record, with tiebreakers determined by head-to-head results.

• Final rankings determine seeding for the end-of-season tournament.

League Policies & Rules

Rules and policies for each league are set prior to the season by athletic directors from across the deanery. See the overview or full set of rules below: