![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/images\/26-0511-s2p-upshot-league-800x600.jpg\")
Image caption: The UPSHOT League.<\/em><\/p>\n
The need has never been greater. Basketball is being played at more levels, in more places than ever before. ref-ology\u2019s approach is simple \u2013 meet this demand with more officials, better prepared, in every marketplace, growing alongside the game. Through an accessible, app-based platform, referees learn alongside seasoned pros and level up wherever they are in their officiating path. Referees can learn more at <\/em>https:\/\/ref-ology.com\/<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n ref-ology was founded by Shelley Russi, a former, long-time NCAA Referee, who led WNBA Referee Performance & Development from 2016-2018. She is joined by Don Vaden, a former NBA Finals Referee and former Director of Officials for the NBA and WNBA. Shelley and Don are known for elevating officials at all levels.<\/p>\n \u201cThis partnership reflects our commitments to raising the standard of officiating and creating an environment where referees are supported, developed, and empowered to succeed, said Taj McWilliams-Franklin, VP of Basketball Operations. \u201cWorking along ref-ology allows us to build a sustainable referee eco-system that benefits everyone involved in The UPSHOT League.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cref-ology\u2019s approach is simple: we train officials at every level with a singular focus to grow a community of referees that the modern game demands \u2014 and, right now, women\u2019s basketball is leading the way to transforming what\u2019s required of referees and what\u2019s required of those training and assigning referees,\u201d says founder Shelley Russi.<\/p>\n Don Vaden adds, \u201cGiving all referees in our community the attention, teaching and an honest assessment of performance gives each the skills to perform at a high level. Growing a peer-to-peer feedback community rooted in sound fundamentals, is key to restoring trust in basketball officiating.\u201d<\/p>\n This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to creating opportunity while strengthening the UPSHOT League by paying attention to the development of the people who officiate it.<\/p>\n The UPSHOT League\u2019s inaugural season runs May through August. Fans can follow the action at upshotleague.com<\/a> and @UPSHOTLeague on social media.<\/p>\n About ref-ology<\/strong><\/p>\n ref-ology is a leader in referee training and growth. Founded by Shelley Russi, ref-ology\u2019s community serves officials of any age, gender, in any league, anywhere in the world \u2014 from those calling their first games to those working on the sport\u2019s biggest stages. ref-ology, The Practice of Refereeing Present \u2013 Physically, Mentally, Respectfully<\/em>, uses an accessible, app-based platform to deliver teaching, honest feedback and a community that helps referees build peer-to-peer \u2018growth mindset\u2019 relationships, receive mentorship and grow alongside the game. Interested in leveling up your officiating, join us at https:\/\/ref-ology.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n About the UPSHOT League<\/strong><\/p>\n The UPSHOT League is a professional women\u2019s basketball league founded in 2025 and launched in May 2026 with a belief that the Future is UP. Led by commissioner, co-founder and former WNBA president Donna Orender, the league features four teams across the Southeastern United States \u2014 the Jacksonville Waves, Savannah Steel, Greensboro Groove and Charlotte Crown \u2014 each playing a 34-game season from May through August. Backed by founding advisors including Women\u2019s Basketball Hall of Famers Cheryl Miller, Ann Meyers Drysdale, Tamika Catchings, and Chamique Holdsclaw. The UPSHOT League is built on creating opportunity in women\u2019s basketball. Learn more at https:\/\/upshotleague.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" JACKSONVILLE, Fla., July 24, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — The UPSHOT League has turned to ref-ology – a respected name in officiating training and growth – to source and evaluate the referees who officiate its games. This move reflects a league built on creating opportunity, not only for the players on the court but for the officials working alongside them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10216,"featured_media":135247,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[611,755,12804,1,14,19632,30],"tags":[20482],"class_list":["post-137011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball-news","category-alliances-news","category-ap","category-business-news","category-florida-news","category-jacksonville-business","category-sports-news","tag-womens-basketball","has-post-title","has-post-date","no-post-category","no-post-tag","no-post-comment","has-post-author"],"acf":[],"views":251,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10216"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=137011"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":137016,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137011\/revisions\/137016"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=137011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=137011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=137011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}