PILOT MOUNTAIN — The Pilot Mountain Youth Soccer Association (PMYSA) has announced a series of sign-ups in the coming weeks at the Armfield Civic and Recreation Center in preparation for its fall soccer season.

Sign-ups will begin Saturday morning from 10 a.m. to noon with additional weekend dates scheduled for July 17 and 24, with times to remain the same. Midweek sign-ups will be available from 6 to 8 p.m. on July 13 and 15.

League play will be available for youngsters between the ages of 4 and 18 at a cost of $40 per participant. Enrollment forms also are available on the PMYSA Web site at www.mtpilotsoccer.com and may be mailed in along with enrollment fees.

The fall season will begin in mid-August with play scheduled to continue through approximately Nov. 1. A majority of the games, depending on age, will be held at the Armfield Civic and Recreation Center.

The program was initially established in the fall of 2002 by a group of local soccer enthusiasts and supporters as part of the Armfield Center youth sports program. It has since become a private, non-profit entity and, through the years, has experienced substantial growth.

The popular program now regularly draws more than 200 youths from both Surry and Stokes counties for both its fall and spring programs. The spring program debuted in 2007.

According to PMYSA Vice President Marc Easter, the all-volunteer program relies heavily on parents and supporters to fill rolls ranging from coaching and refereeing to organization and maintenance. Local businesses and individuals are counted on to sponsor teams in order to aid in covering program expenses.

The program also has paid dividends for local middle and high school programs. Last year saw East Surry High School field its first all-girls soccer team. And the East Surry boys’ team completed the most successful regular season in the program’s history last fall, claiming its first winning season, highest conference finish and most wins, all topped off by a first–ever state playoff invitation.

“I give a lot of credit to PMYSA,” East Surry Head Coach William Hart said in an interview last fall. “That program has so helped soccer to grow in this area. It has created an excitement and we’re starting to reap the benefits of that. Over the next two to three years, I’m expecting that we’ll have a very good high school program, and that will be due to our youth and middle school programs.”