REGAL Runners, Basketball Expand to Younger Grades

For 48 years, the River Edge Girls Athletic League (REGAL) has been providing young girls in the borough various opportunities for athletic instruction with a focus on fun, good sportsmanship and teamwork in a competitive atmosphere. And with four sports to choose from, REGAL is now expanding its running programs to allow future athletes from fourth through eighth grade to compete as well as welcoming Oradell seventh/eighth graders onto the basketball court.

"We are expanding our REGAL runners program this year to include 4th grade through 8th grade," REGAL Vice-President Beth Chinigo said. "Last year, we had about 40 girls run in the River Edge Run, and expect even more this year. Our travel and recreation basketball programs are in full swing and now have five travel teams. Our seventh/eighth grade recreation program was also expanded to include girls from Oradell, and we've made arrangements to play games against Hackensack recreation too."

The REGAL Runners program will be split into two seasons for participants. The winter season, from the end of February until April 20 will prepare runners to compete in the 5K River Edge Run. A second season will be set up for the spring for training for the Saint Peter's Turkey Trot in November.

The cost for participation in REGAL Runners is $45 per person and includes a shirt, practices, training program, and guest speakers. Registration will close on February 2.

Basketball season which began on Jan. 7 will run through early March.

"We're really excited about our programs," Chinigo said. "We also moved to an all-online registration process."

The new online registration, will be utilized for recreation basketball, travel basketball, and REGAL Runners, and replaces the former in-person and paper registration. Online registration for softball and volleyball will be set up at a later date.

Parents can pay for registration via a credit card (Visa or Mastercard) or a check, but until the check is received by REGAL Treasurer MaryLou Hroncic, registration will not be considered confirmed.

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