5/21 UPDATE!

Shades has been accepted into the Boston Invitational! We will take ~25 players to compete at Devens on June 23-24.

Details for players looking to be rostered:
Must be available for the tournament June 23-24.
Must pay a $30 player fee for the weekend. More details later.
Must attend a Shades event before the tournament.

Still Need Leadership:
Shades is still looking for a committed coach and a committed player leadership core! Shades will be assisted by Valley Ultimate to complete administrative tasks and finalize schedules. Other responsibilities will include planning practice activities and forming team strategies and building team culture. The team leadership will need to commit to be present for the USAU Club Series, and regular season practices and tournaments. Shades’ season schedule will partly be determined by the availability of the leadership group. If you, or someone you know, is available and interested in working with Valley Ultimate as a coach or player leader, please contact joe.costello2@gmail.com.

Next Steps:
Shades will have an event on June 9 from 11am-2pm. Players will introduce themselves, warm up and do one or two drills before a team scrimmage. The session will end with a partial summer schedule.

Remaining Potential Tournaments:
Boston Invitational (Devens, MA) June 23-24
Antler Lock (Burlington, VT) July 7-8
Ow My Knee (Albany, NY) July 21-22
Nucci’s Cup (Princeton, NJ) August 11-12
WNE Club Sectionals (Northampton, MA) September 9-10
NE Club Regionals (Devens, MA) September 22-23

Keep your eyes on this page for more updates!

Do you think you might be interested in playing with Shades? Fill out our player interest form!

Shades was first formed in the summer of 2016 as a developmental team for Dark or Light, another Open club team in the area. Shades players would attend Dark or Light practices, learn and develop skills, and compete for invitations to tournaments and roster spots.

In 2017, Dark or Light did not form as a team for the first time since 2008(?). In its place, Shades formed at the end of the summer to compete at WNE Sectionals. Without any practices or tournament experience, Shades made it to the qualifying game for NE Regionals, but lost by one goal.

In 2018, Shades would like to solidify themselves as a competitive Open playing option in the Valley while including youth players in a club playing experience. Shades will expect to form at the beginning of the summer and compete in local tournaments while also practicing skills and strategy in preparation for the Club series. The Valley will hope to return an Open team to Regionals and represent our Section well.

“Who do I contact?”

For more information on Shades contact Joe Costello: joe.costello2@gmail.com