The participation in youth basketball continues to rise in the City of Milton. Last year, a record 235 registered for the city league for boys from kindergarten through 8th grade and girls from third through eighth grade. This year more than 300 have registered for the season, according to Recreation Activities Coordinator Robert Arnold .
“We have 45 teams and little over 300 kids,” Arnold said. “It has grown every year. It has never declined.”
The continued growth has even led to a reorganization of the youth league, which now allows kindergarteners to play in their own division. Previously, kindergarten age children had to play on teams with first and second graders, Arnold said.
“We actually had enough kindergartners this year to sign up for their own league,” he said. “It’s more a level playing field.”
In addition to practicing and competing at the GuyThompsonCommunity Center, the city’s parks and recreation department is also renting a recreation center in East Milton and using the MiltonHigh School gymnasium on occasion.
The increase led to several volunteers are coaching two different age groups, including Ricky Downs, who coaches kindergarteners and a team consisting of third through fourth graders.
“It’s the first time I have coached two teams,” Downs said. “It consumes a lot of your time…the kids have a good time and it’s fun.”
In addition to teaching the fundamentals of the sport to children, the city league also allows playing time for each child, Downs said.
“Everybody is required to play at least a half,” Downs said. “So everybody, no matter what their skill level, gets in the game and gets to play. That helps a lot because the kids who are in need of skills when they are in the second, third and fourth grade, could develop and be very good athletically later on.”
Among his players on the third through fourth grade team is nine-year-old Timothy Lewis of Milton, who is currently in third year with the Milton Youth Basketball program. Lewis is a fan of the sport and plans continue playing basketball for years to come.
“It’s the activity and getting more energy an basically having fun,” Lewis said.
Basketball is not the only sport to see an increase in participation. Arnold said all of the city’s youth sports leagues have seen increase participation including football and baseball.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Milton Youth Basketball participation on the rise