FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2010

Softball Canada Announces 2010 Award Winners

(Ottawa, ON) Softball Canada is extremely pleased to announce the following award winners who will be recognized at the Softball Canada Hall of Fame Banquet on November 13th, 2010 in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Banquet will be held in conjunction with the Softball Canada Annual General Meeting, which will take place from November 11-13. As previously announced, Linda Edey (Builder, Alberta), Dave Moore (Official, Saskatchewan), Noreen Murphy (Coach, Saskatchewan), Jacki Nichol (Athlete, Saskatchewan) and Al Shenduk (Official, Alberta) will be inducted into the Softball Canada Hall of Fame during this Banquet.

The Home Run Sports Coach of the Year award will be presented to Earle Woodside from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, who led the Saskatoon Junior A Outlaws to a Gold medal at the 2010 Canadian Junior Women's Championship and also guided the University of Saskatchewan to a Gold medal at the Canadian Intercollegiate Championship. Earle has been an outstanding coach in Saskatoon, and is very well respected by opposing coaches and umpires, as well as his players and their parents.

Lawrence "Moose" Gibson, from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, has been selected as the recipient of the Home Run Sports Umpire of the Year award. A Level IV umpire in both Fastpitch and Slo-Pitch, Moose has been actively umpiring for 17 years, and had a major role in bringing the 2010 Blue Convention to Regina earlier this year. He has been the Umpire in Chief (UIC) for the province of Saskatchewan since 2007, and also serves as the UIC for the Canadian Forces since 2004. Moose has been a tremendous mentor to numerous umpires in Saskatchewan and across the country, and exemplifies the hard work, passion and determination that goes into officiating.

The Rose Hodgson Volunteer of the Year will be presented to Bryan Kosteroski from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Bryan is the President of the Saskatoon Amateur Softball Association, which successfully hosted the 2010 Canadian Junior Women's Championship and the Canadian Intercollegiate Championship. Bryan has been involved with softball for many years as a player, coach and administrator, and gives so much to the softball community in Saskatchewan. Saskatoon has an excellent volunteer base and is always a prime location to hold major tournaments and events, due in large part to Bryan's excellent organizational skills and his great relationship with his numerous local volunteers.

This year's recipients of the Claude Deschamps Memorial Fund are Shirrae Muhr from Regina, Saskatchewan and Michael Friedrich from Edmonton, Alberta.

Shirrae Muhr, a third year Kinesiology student at the University of Regina, had a great summer on the field, helping the Regina Team Remco to a Bronze medal at the 2010 Canadian Junior Women's Championship. After spending three years at Galveston College in Texas, she returned to her home province to continue her studies in 2009 and led the University of Regina Cougars to a Silver medal at the 2010 Canadian Intercollegiate Championship. She also takes the time out of her busy softball schedule to give clinics on behalf of Softball Saskatchewan, including helping out as a pitching instructor and serving as the pitching coach of the Regina Bantam Gold travel team.

Michael Friedrich has just begun the second year of his Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Alberta. A strong academic student, Michael played for the Leduc 747's of the Capital City Men's League in Alberta, and represented his province as a member of the Viking Reclamation Coyotes at the 2010 Canadian Midget Boys Canadian Championship. He was also a member of Team Alberta at the U19 International Men's Championship in 2009. A well-rounded athlete, Friedrich also played hockey and volleyball growing up, and volunteered as an official and scorekeeper for his local high school. His education goal is to apply for medical school following the completion of his Science Degree.

The Ethel Boyce Memorial Award will be awarded to Shea Black from Toronto, Ontario and Brent Mills from Napanee, Ontario.

Shea Black, from Toronto, Ontario, is a third year Business Administration student at the University of Western Ontario in London. This summer, she was a member of the Whitby Junior Eagles who won a Silver medal at the Provincial Championship, and also played for the UWO Mustangs this fall in the Ontario Intercollegiate Women's Fastpitch Association. In addition to playing, Black has also established herself as a coach in Scarborough, starting out as a volunteer Squirt coach in 2006 and now as a select softball coach for the Scarborough Ravens. She has helped her players develop over last few years, culminating with an undefeated 2010 season.

Brent Mills recently completed his degree in Physical and Health Education in 2010 and is currently taking his one year Bachelor of Education at Queen's University. A native of Napanee, Ontario, he was a member of the Napanee Junior Men's Express that won a Gold medal at the 2010 Canadian Junior Men's Championship. He has also played in five other Canadian Championships in the Midget and Junior categories, including a Gold medal in 2005 and Bronze medals in 2004 and 2009. In addition to competing on the softball field, Brent also enjoys other sports such as hockey, basketball, volleyball, football and rugby. He also serves as a high school hockey coach, and volunteers for Foster Care Relief.

Congratulations to all of this year's award winners!

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For more information, please contact:

Gilles LeBlanc
Manager - Marketing and Communications
Softball Canada
gleblanc@softball.ca
(613) 523-3386 ext. 3105