***Only Athletes who are recommended by an Edgemont UFSD board appointed coach, physical education teacher or athletic administrator and receive a letter from the Athletic Director are eligible to participate in the process***

The Athletic Placement Process (APP) is a program for evaluating athletes in grade eight (8) and in some cases grade seven (7) for readiness to compete on a Junior Varsity or Varsity team. Placement is determined according to a particular athlete’s physical maturity, fitness level, socioemotional readiness, and sport-specific skills in relation to other athletes on those teams in accordance with standards established by the Commissioner as they pertain to creating and maintaining a safe and healthy environment.

***Students in grade seven (7) are only eligible for Athletic Placement in a sport that has no modified team attached to it. Please see below, those particular programs:

• Varsity Boys & Girls Swim (please see information below)

• Varsity Gymnastics (please see information below)

• Varsity Ski (please see information below)

• Varsity Boys & Girls Golf (please see green highlighted text below)

Students do not mature at the same rate, and there can be tremendous developmental differences between students of the same age. The APP is not to be used to fill positions on teams, provide additional experience, provide an opportunity for middle school or junior high students when no modified program is offered, or to reward a student. Instead, it is aimed at the few, select students who can benefit from such placement because of their “level of readiness”.

The APP is to be used only when an individual athlete’s athletic skills warrant moving to the intermediate or commencement level of competition, and therefore, will only be initiated by the district’s physical education director and/or athletic director, the physical education staff, or the programs coaches who recognize the student’s skill. Evaluation should be considered only for those students with the appropriate physical and emotional readiness, and whose athletic abilities are outside of those of their age-related peers.

• If a student has undergone the APP evaluation procedure and participated in the 7th grade, the process would not have to be repeated in the 8th grade provided they remain at the same level of athletic competition in the same sport. If the student changes levels or sports, the student’s scores should be reviewed to see if they meet the requirements for the desired level and sport.

• If a student entering grade 7 or 8 has reached the chronological age of 15 years old prior to July 1, he or she is eligible to participate on high school athletics without undergoing the APP; only medical approval by the district medical director is required, as these students are already at an advanced age and would otherwise lose eligibility due to “aging out”.

• Swim Athletes - A student's eligibility for the APP process will be based on their current swim times which will be obtained from their youth organization by the Edgemont Swim Coach. Parents of Swim Athletes may contact the swim coach Tobey Saracino (tsaracino@edgemont.org) in the Fall for male athletes, and in the Spring for female athletes.

• Gymnastics Athletes - Please contact coach (listed on our "Contact Us" page) in the Fall if your child is interested in participating in gymnastics at the varsity level.

• Ski Athletes - Even though we offer a developmental ski program for middle school students, it is NOT a modified program as the students do not get an opportunity to compete in meets. Therefore, students in 7th grade are eligible to test up. A student's eligibility for the APP process will be based on their current race times which should be forwarded to Ski Coach Dan Cherico (chericony@gmail.com).

• Golf Athletes - Any student in seventh or eighth grade will be permitted to try out for the varsity golf team. At the completion of the tryout sessions, which must include 18 holes golfed over a three-day period (the first three days of the individual’s tryout when the course is accessible), the student will be eligible for the team if the individual’s golf average puts him/her in the top eight golfers. Parents of Golf Athletes should contact Athletic Director, Anthony De Rosa (aderosa@edgemont.org) prior to February 1st to obtain the necessary forms.

APP Dates to Keep in Mind

• Fall Season

  • APP Testing will be held during the first or second full week of June. 

  • Tryouts for JV and Varsity teams (excluding Football) will generally begin on the Monday, two weeks prior to Labor Day (please check the actual start date on our "Athletic Registration" page)

  • If you think there is a chance for your child to be identified for the APP as per the guidelines above PLEASE DO NOT SCHEDULE VACATION TIME DURING THIS PERIOD as we will be unable to adjust the timeline to accommodate your child.

• Winter Season

  • APP Testing will begin the week prior to the start of the Winter Season.

• Spring Season

  • APP Testing will begin the week prior to the start of the Spring Season.

If upon examination by the school medical director the athlete does not meet the required standards in the desired sport and level, he or she may not proceed any further in the evaluation process.

Also, if an athlete fails to meet an appropriate sport skill level as determined by the coach, he or she may not proceed any further in the evaluation process.

Only the student-athletes who pass all parts of the APP are permitted to try out. There are no waivers. A student must meet the appropriate standards of physical and emotional maturity, size, fitness, and skill, in order to qualify.

APP Process:

"Pre-Stages"

• The student is identified & nominated by a coach, physical education teacher or athletic administrator

• The student MUST have a completed Annual Health and Sports Exam Form (dated within the last 12 months) on file with the school health office.

***If you need to submit a new physical, please make sure it is on the NYS Standard Form (HERE).

"Stages"

1. Notification sent to parent along with parental consent form

2. School guidance/administration provides approval of student-athletes socioemotional readiness and academic performance

3. School Doctor provides Medical Clearance based on student-athletes physical maturity level

4. Nominator provides a sport-skill evaluation of the student-athlete

5. Student must pass a physical fitness exam by scoring in the 85^th percentile for their age and sex

6. Athletic Director determines if student is cleared/not cleared for tryouts

7. The student-athlete is allowed to try out for the sport and level requested.

***If at any time a student-athlete does not meet the criteria of a particular phase, they may not proceed any further in the evaluation process and must return to the modified level of competition.

***If the student-athlete does not make the team after the try-out period has concluded, they must return to the modified level of competition.

Please review the benchmarks below.

• Students must reach the 85th percentile for their age.
• Students must pass four of the five tests to remain eligible to try out:
  • Curl-ups
  • Shuttle Run
  • V-Sit & Reach (or traditional Sit & Reach)
  • Mile Run (or 500m Swim for Swimmers)
  • Pull-ups (or Right Angle Push-ups)

Please Note:

• On school days, all athletic practices begin at 4:00 pm in order to allow athletes time to attend academic extra help sessions.

• Varsity and JV sports run Monday - Saturday

• Modified sports run Monday - Friday

• The length of practices are generally 2 hrs. for Varsity/JV Teams and 1.5 hrs. for Modified.

• The school does not provide transportation to local practice/home sites

Fall Sports

Winter Sports

Spring Sports

***For verification of the above information, please visit the "Daily Schedule", which will be posted by 12:00 pm each day and will be updated as weather conditions dictate***

Please Note:

• Varsity and JV Sports are for high school students (grades 9-12)

• Modified Sports are for middle school students (grades 7-8). The exception being Football where it is grades 7,8 & 9.

• Athletes trying out for a Varsity or JV sport must be in attendance during the entire try-out/preseason period.

• For teams making selections, the tryout period takes place during the first week of practices and is generally three (3) days in duration, but may be extended to five (5) days if the coach feels that additional time is needed to evaluate the athletes and make determinations.

• On school days, all athletic practices begin at 4:00 pm in order to allow athletes time to attend academic extra help sessions.

• General Lengths of Practices (actual lengths can vary)

  • Varsity & JV: 2 hrs

  • Modified: 1.5 hrs

• Varsity and JV sports run Monday - Saturday

• Modified sports run Monday - Friday