Festival Sports FAQ

All middle school students can participate in the festival program.

Exceptions: Be aware of the No Pass, No Play policy.

There are no cuts. Athletes will be placed on teams based on their experience and ability. They will play against teams of their similar ability level and from the other middle schools within the district.

Festival: The participation forms and fees, $75, are due on the first day of practice. Tax Credit is a payment option.

All-Stars: The fee of $30 is in addition to the Festival Cost

Sports Festival season dates are:

• Boy’s Basketball and Girl’s Softball begin in August.
• Boy’s and Girl’s Track & Field begin in October/November.
• Boy’s Football and Girl’s Volleyball begin in December.
• Girl’s Basketball begins in February.
• Boy’s Wrestling begins April.

Students will need to dress out for practice in T-shirts and comfortable shorts or sweatpants depending and the season and the weather. The athletes will need to wear black shorts and the green festival shirts (provided) during the festival tournament.

Suggested Items

Basketball: Players should wear basketball or athletic shoes.

Softball: A softball mitt, fast pitch bat and help with with facemask. Rubber cleats are not mandatory for softball, but suggested for safety.

Track: Athletic shoes. No running cleats needed.

Students who do not currently have PE will be assigned a PE locker and will need to provide their own combination lock. All belongings must be locked in a locker during practice.

Practices run:

• 2:40 to 4:10 p.m. for Desert Shadows Middle, Greenway, Shea, Sunrise, and Vista Verde
• 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. for Pinnacle Peak Preparatory
• 3:40 to 5:10 p.m. for Explorer and Mountain Trail

All athletes must be picked up by 4:15 p.m. or 5:15 p.m. (depending on the end time listed above) on practice days. Ask your coach where this pick-up is located.

Any athlete who will be riding the late bus will get picked up in the back parking lot.

Ask your coach or Athletic Director for details, as late bus drop-off locations differ from regular bus locations.

Shadow Mountain High School 
2902 E. Shea Blvd
Phoenix, AZ 85028

Shea Middle School
2728 E. Shea Blvd.
Phoenix, AZ 85028

It costs $2 to attend Festival as a spectator. Please bring a chair as seating is limited.

Sports Festival dates are all held on a Saturday during the following months: 

• September: Boy’s Basketball and Girl’s Softball
• December: Boy’s and Girl’s Track & Field
• January: Boy’s Football and Girl’s Volleyball
• March: Girl’s Basketball
• May: Boy’s Wrestling

Yes, you can pick up your child from an away game but you must sign them out with the coach. There needs to be an official release form filed at the school for a coach to allow this to happen.

No, you can only sign out your own child.

Your child will ride the bus, with the coaches, back to your home school. You will need to pick him or her up in the parking lot.

While the exact time will vary, we usually return between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Each coach will pass out a calendar at the beginning of their season. Occasionally, some practice days will get changed.

Some of the sports have All-Star seasons that follow the Festival seasons. The coaches will pick the athletes for their All-Star team following the Festival season.

Teams are posted at school on the Monday after the festival.

There will usually be about 12 athletes chosen and it will be based on ability, attitude, and sportsmanship.

Read about scholar athletes.

The fee for the All-Star season is an additional $30. This needs to be paid on the first day of the All-Star practice.

The All-Star Season dates are: 

• Boy’s Basketball and Girl’s Softball begin on Oct. 7 – Oct. 30.
• Boy’s Football and Girl’s Volleyball begin on Feb. 3 – Feb. 20.
• Girl’s Basketball begins on Mar. 17 – Apr. 10.

• 7th grade All-Star games begin at approximately 4:30 p.m.
• 8th grade All-Star games begin at approximately 5:30 p.m.
• Softball games both start at 4:30 p.m.
• JV and Varsity Wrestling run concurrently.

There are seven all-star games. There are home and away games.

Each coach will pass out a calendar at the beginning of their season. Occasionally, some practice days will get changed.