My, how a soccer program for little people has grown quite big. About two-thirds of the children eligible are suiting up for Big Sandy Soccer this year. "I had to order a bunch more stuff," said co-director Rachel Baumgarn, sorting through a bevy of equipment before Thursday's after-school practice.

A record 80 players have formed three U6 (ages 6 and younger) teams, coached by the tandems of Kelly McGrath and Brandy Terry; Katie Heppner and brother Riley Kurtz; and Jessica Butler and Heather Wolery. Two U8 teams are each under the tutelage of Baumgarn's co-director Petra Yirsa and LeAnn Williams. Judy Yirsa and Bryanna Goodman each take the helm of a U12 squad.

"They are wonderful, amazing volunteers," Baumgarn said. Petra Yirsa said she started coaching "because my oldest son was too scared to play unless I was with him:" and now has been at it off and on totaling four seasons.

"I really enjoy U8s," she said. "They start to where they can actually do things as a team and still learn, without being as intense as U12."

Baumgarn said coaching and administering the program always brings joy and laughter, even as no one officially keeps score. "My favorite was always Mr. James Yirsa," she laughed. "He would always ask, 'Coach, did we win?' ... because he was a competitive little guy. And I would always say, 'Yes.'"

The Big Sandy fútbolers play games on six September/October weekend dates against teams from Fort Benton and Geraldine, alternating the site for the contests. Matches begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday in Fort Benton and continue until about noon. The remaining mini-tournament in Big Sandy kicks off at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, at F.E. Miley School.

"Come out to the games and eat concessions," Baumgarn said, to support the not-for-profit organization. Donations can also be made via check to P.O. Box 61, Big Sandy, MT 59520 or by contacting Baumgarn at 378-2329.

It is a program that keeps kids active and that excites coach Judy Yirsa. "My husband drove home out to the farm (one) Saturday and said that almost every yard that he passed had kids playing soccer," she said. "That's a good thing this day and age when everybody is on iPads. Soccer is not an individual sport. They need a team to actually score." Judy Yirsa added that the registration fee is just $12 and no one is turned away for inability to pay.

Parents are pleased with the benefits the program provides their children. "It's really nice that the town has a program where my kids can have fun, be outside and it challenges them," said Anna Fasteson, whose sons Isaac, 12, and Aaron 9, and daughters Claire, 8, and Ruby, 4, are all suiting up in the teams' purple and black vertical stripes. "It makes them want to be better and work harder."

Fasteson said as recent transplants from Connecticut and a homeschool family, it provides a social element that has helped them integrate to the community.

For Goodman, it allows her to remain attached to a passion she has cherished since the age of 4.

She said she played throughout high school and in a competitive intramural program at Brigham Young University-Idaho. "Always mixed teams," she said, of men and women, helping prepare her for the dynamic of coaching boys and girls together.

The season will conclude for the young kickers with games beginning at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 13, in Geraldine.