Region 294 Coach Meeting - July 27,2025
July 27, 2025 – Coach Welcome Meeting
August 3, 2025 – First Aid Training @3PM 6412 Laurel Avenue – Hospital Conference Room (trailer in front of hospital)
If you provide proof of ACLS/PALS or First Aid card to [email protected], you will not need to attend
this training.
August 4, 2025 – Start Forming Teams & Get uniforms ordered
August 10, 2025 – Coaches get Rosters and Equipment @6:30PM Mt. Mesa Park
August 16, 2025 – Super Camp & Fingerprinting @8am Cal State Bakersfield (Coaches and Referees) Must complete online
courses and sign up on AYSOU to attend. Watch for SuperCamp tab on our website
August 23, 2025 – Referee Training – Must sign up on AYSOU to attend - 8am at Lutheran Church
September 6, 2025 – Opening Day
First games for U16/19 in Bakersfield
U14 Scrimmage or Game @11
Activities, food TBD
September 13, 2025 – First games for Region 294
October 2025 – Mid Season Coach Meeting -
Date & Location TBD
Evaluations will be handed out – Due back by November 2, 2025
November 15, 2025 – Last Games
Equipment turn in after games.
Division Check-In Meeting – Every Sunday @ 7 via Teams. Link will be sent out mid-August.
This meeting will be our weekly check in. You are not required to attend. We plan to have the meeting last 20 minutes. We will cover 1 topic every meeting related to coaching/refereeing. We will open the floor to questions/discussions. We ask that you keep it kind and respectful. Both Coaches and Referees are welcome. There will be no tolerance of bad behavior.
Your Board Members
Regional Commissioner – Dena Griffith
Treasurer – Jacob Branam
Secretary – Dena as acting Secretary
Safety – Kelsey Whitfield
CVPA – Amanda Goins
Referee Administrator – Blaze Goyette
Division Coordinator & Registrar - Jordyn Speakman
Coach Administrator – Skyler Hug
A little AYSO Background
Built on the power of volunteer support, AYSO brings together community members to coach, referee and support their local Regions with the ultimate goal of creating a fun, family-friendly environment where your child can grow and develop not only their soccer skills, but their leadership and social skills for life.
Six Philosophies of Everyone Plays®, Balanced Teams, Positive Coaching, Good Sportsmanship, Open Registration and Player Development.
THANK YOU for volunteering. This program is not possible without our community working together to support our youth.
Our current goal is to increase the number of volunteers we have within our program. We want this to be a community program. More volunteers (Coaches, Assistant Coaches, Team Parents, Referees, Field Setup, Field Marking, Board Members, Etc..) means less stress and workload on the few we have.
Website
We have all current information listed. There are tabs for parents, referees, and coaches. You can find all this information there as well.
Coach Packet
Rosters
* Our region is using MOJO Sports for communication. Rosters are set to drop on MOJO August 11, 2025. Everyone is entered for you, just hop on and message your team!
* Try to get a response from each player. If you cannot get ahold of a player by August 15, please let Jordyn know ASAP so we can try other methods of communication.
* We do have kids on the waitlist for some divisions. If kids do not show up and absences aren’t communicated to you, please let Jordyn know so she can reach out to those families.
* Medical Release, Incident Report Form, Concussion Procedure
* Please keep these with you at every practice and game.
* Parent Pledge, Player Pledge, and a sponsor form are all in this packet. Player Pledge and Parent Pledge will need to be turned back into the region on opening day.
Uniforms
* We will let you know when uniforms are in.
* Team names and player numbers are due by August 29th. *Player #’s 8U and up only.
* If player numbers are not turned in by the required date, your game cards will not be filled out for you.
* Please make sure Skyler has your shirt size.
Equipment
All coaches will receive a coach bag with cones, pinnies, balls, a ball pump, spare needles, whistle, ball bag, and first aid kit. U10 and above will also receive a game planner, keeper jerseys, and gloves. If any equipment needs to be replaced, please contact Skyler.
Parent Meeting
* We strongly encourage coaches to hold a parent meeting at the beginning of the season to set forth expectations and objectives. We want to advise parents that it is important for players to make it to practices, games, and help with game day needs. We also ask that parents do not attempt to make calls during the games, or speak to, or at, the referees. If a parent interferes with the referee, or any part of the game, the game can be terminated or the coach can be penalized with a card.
* This is a great time to have the player and parent pledges passed around and signed.
First Games
* All other divisions will have their first games on September 13, 2025 except for 16U.
* Games will only be cancelled by the Regional Commissioner or Referee.
* If there is a weather issue, MOJO will be our direct line of communication.
* If you do not have enough players, please reach out to Skyler to see what requires a cancellation. In most instances you can play down OR player pool (player pool must be approved).
* The last game is November 15, 2025.
* All Stars is January 17 &18 for Divisons 10U and above. If you are taking an Allstar's team, you can not select your team or approach any players for Allstars until given the green light by the Coach Administrator.
* All Stars Practice Games are January 10, 2026
U8 – 5-6 teams with 7 each team
* We will have 2-3 game slots on Saturday.
* If we end up with an odd number, some teams may have a bye and some will have 2 games
U10 – 5-6 teams with 9 on each team
* There will be 2-3 game slots every Saturday
U12 – 4 teams with 11 on each team
* There will be 2 game slots every Saturday
U14 – 3 teams with 10/11 on each team
* There will be one game every Saturday starting on opening day (if uniforms are in).
* These will most likely be small-sided match games and will be played on the U12 field.
Goal Setup
This year the goals will be setup on Friday night for the coaches! The last games of the day will be responsible for tear down and returning them to the equipment pod.
Referees
* Whether it be Center or AR, ANY help is appreciated.
* Our referees are spread thin. Some are there from 7:30-3:30 every Saturday.
* The regional referee training is being held on August 23rd from 8am-5pm at the Lutheran Church in Lake Isabella. Must signup on AYSOU to attend.
* We would love for each team to send a parent.
* Coaches! We would love for YOU to attend as well! This is a great way to learn the rules of the game and have a better understanding and respect for our referees.
* Youth referees – Must be age 12 or older. They make great referees for U8 and can help on the sidelines with older divisions.
* All youth referees will be wearing a green referee uniform.There will be a NO TOLERANCE policy of speaking to one of our youth referees in an inappropriate matter. Parents will be notified of this.
* Jacqueline Phillips will be managing the youth referees this year.
Field Schedule
* There isn’t one! Please share the field. We know there isn’t much space and it can get rough out there. The goal is for the kids to get practice!
* Practice fields need approval from the board. We must have contracts in place with any field of practice. If you plan on practicing anywhere other than Mountain Mesa Park, let us know so we can see if we can get a contract with the field.
How to get started / What is Required?
Log into WWW.AYSO294.ORG, Click on the person icon on the left-hand side and it will pull up your volunteer profile.
* Playground, Schoolyard, U6, and U8
1) Risk Status
2) Background Check – click box, then renew & update, follow prompt.
3) Concussion Awareness - Click AYSOU tab on the upper right hand side of the page. Click Training Library and find Concussion under the Safe Haven tab.
4) Fingerprinting -
* If you only intend to help with the Playground, Schoolyard, and U6 you are not required to complete the fingerprinting as the hourly requirements from the state of CA will not be met. It is required for U8 and above. We still HIGHLY suggest it for all divisions.
* You each need an individual code. Jordyn has these. She will send these out individually. You will then follow this link https://www.applicantservices.com/AYSO-Prepaid and enter the code.
* It must be done at one of the listed locations. You must be set up PRIOR to your appointment. Fingerprints remain as long as you sign up as a volunteer yearly. You can sign up as a team parent, field setup, etc... just to keep these valid - even if you don’t intend to volunteer that year.
5) Sudden Cardiac Arrest - Click AYSOU tab on the upper right hand side of the page. Click Training Library and find Sudden Cardiac Arrest under the Safe Haven tab.
6) AYSOs Safe Haven - Click AYSOU tab on the upper right hand side of the page. Click Training Library and find AYSOs Safe Haven under the Safe Haven tab.
7) SafeSport (Annual Recertification) Click the box, then renew & update, the pop up will prompt you to follow the link.
8) Coaching License - Click AYSOU tab on the upper right hand side of the page. Click Training Library and find your coaching level under the Coaching tab.
U10, U12, U14, and U16/19
* Same as above PLUS Additional In-Person Training
* The In-person trainings are not required for our regional play. However, these In-Person trainings are required for Tournament and All-Star play levels.
* You can sign up in AYSOU under Training Events.
We understand it is hard to attend these In-Person trainings. We highly encourage them as they will help improve the skill level and knowledge of our coaches which in turn will improve the skill level of the players in our region.