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BY MARK LOEHNDORF, THE STARPHOENIX

The prolonged silence around the softball diamonds in Saskatoon has finally come to an end, as teams are moving outside in preparation for the softball season.

It certainly could not have come soon enough for Saskatoon Amateur Softball Association president Bryan Kosteroski, as his league begins it 49th season and probably its busiest ever. The SASA’s opening pitch of 2013 comes on Sunday, when the “big parks,” Bob Van Impe Stadium and Gordie Howe Fastball Field, host a full slate of men’s games starting at 9: 30 a.m.

With the loss of the Kinsmen Park diamonds, the SASA must feel extremely fortunate to be able to take over all the diamonds at Glenn Reeve Fields. Not only does this make scheduling easier, but it also creates a huge hub for adult fastpitch in Saskatoon.

According to Kosteroski, those parks will be kept hopping, as they will host more softball this summer than in any previous one. Although the Reg Banga Tournament slated for May 10-12 had to be cancelled, there are plenty of events planned, as the diamonds are completely booked through to September.

The two biggest events will be the U21 men’s international softball championship July 9-14, and the senior men’s and women’s western Canadian softball championship Aug. 15-19. An interesting new event for the city is the Diamondbacks ISC Men’s Softball Tournament, July 26-28. This serves as a qualifier for the ISC world championship in August.

The most pleasant problem the SASA will deal with is scheduling a league with an increasing number of teams. In its 49th year of existence, the largest adult fastpitch league in the country will feature 49 teams.

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Click logo to visit official website for Softball Canada

Following Tom Doucette’s (Middle Musquodoboit, NS) retirement from the Head Coach position in February, Softball Canada went through an application process to fill the vacancy and interviewed several strong candidates, with Jones being offered the position.

‘I am very excited and humbled to receive this opportunity’ stated Jones. ‘I have had great experiences playing for Team Canada in 1983, 1984 and 1987 and as well being an assistant coach under Tom Doucette in 2008 and 2012 with the Junior Men’s National Team.’

Jones brings plenty of softball experience as a player and a coach. He is a former Men’s National Team player who was as a member of the gold-medal winning Pan American Games Teams in both 1983 and 1987, and was inducted to the Softball Canada Hall of Fame as an athlete in 2004.

‘Softball Canada was extremely impressed with the quality of individuals that applied for the Head Coach position’ stated Mike Branchaud, Softball Canada’s Manager of National Teams and Canadian Championships. ‘We are extremely excited that Jim Jones will be leading our program. He has a wealth of experience in both playing and coaching at the International level and he will be a great teacher and motivator for the Junior Men’s National Team.’

Jones will take over Canada’s very successful Junior Men’s National Team, considered one of the top World Championship medal threats. The next ISF Junior Men’s World Championship will be played in 2014 in Whitehorse, Yukon, as all ISF events are now held on a two-year cycle.

‘There are six or seven teams that could win the Junior Men’s World Championships and we are one of them’ said Jones. ‘With the tournament being held in Whitehorse once again, our team’s goal is to get to the gold medal game once again for the great fans in the Yukon and our Men’s Fast Pitch program. I will be working on getting my coaching staff in place in the next month or so and develop a plan to identify the best young players in Canada. I look forward to the challenge.’

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For more information, please contact:

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

Hill United Chiefs have one step to the top of the mountain.

Jeff Ellsworth OF
Bradley Ezekial OF
Kyle Ezekial C
Adam Folkard P
Mitch Hardy P
Jason Hill OF/P
Paul Hill UT
Erlind Hill IF
Mark Johnson OF
Mike Joseph P
Dale Levy IF
Calvin Miller IF
Steve Mullaley IF
Grant Patterson P
Jason Sanford C
Nick Shailes IF
Ryan Thompson UT

Click logo for the official SCIFL website.

Maccabi USA defeated the Pala Braves 2-1 to win the April 27-28 SCIFL. Ronnie Rupp went the distance for the Maccabi USA victory.

Sonny Perkins started pitching in the Championship Game for the Pala Braves, who came into the game as the top seed, after going 3-0 on Saturday. After Perkins walked David Shpiro to lead off the game, Larry Silfen bunted Shpiro to second and Jason Gluckman delivered an RBI single to put Maccabi USA up 1-0. Perkins was otherwise sharp until leaving the game in the 3rd inning with a pulled calf injury. Gerald Pyle relieved and was equally effective keeping the Maccabi USA bats in check.

Pala got a solo home run from lead off hitter Chad Gutierrez in the 4th to tie the game at 1-1. The game remained knotted until the 6th as both Pyle and Rupp were terrific. In the top of the 6th, Maccabi USA newcomer Dustin Chapnick doubled to lead off the inning for Maccabi. With 1 out and Chapnick still at 2nd, Silfen bounced a high hopper between SS and 3B and beat it out for his 2nd hit of the game, with the high throw from shortstop getting away, allowing Chapnick to trot home giving MUSA a 2-1 lead. That was enough for Maccabi USA hurler Ronnie Rupp, who got the final 6 outs to secure the Championship, in a nery well played game, by both teams.

Dates: June 14-16, 2013
Location: Tate and Clanton Parks, Rice Lake WI

Team Classifications: NAFA “AA,” “A-Major,” and “A”
Tournament Size: 12 Teams (The first 12 to submit complete entries, including roster)
Tournament Format: NAFA 3-game guarantee
Entry Fee: $200 payable to Rice Lake Orangemen Fastpitch
(Send separate check for $35 to “Wisconsin NAFA” if year 2013 NAFA team registration is desired. This is not required for Invitational entry.)
Rosters: Teams may list a maximum of 18 players on their roster. Rosters MUST be on the attached form and completely filled out, and MUST be submitted along with the tournament entry fee for entry to be accepted

Awards (Based on 12 team field):

1st $600 sponsor’s expense money plus trophy
2nd $450 sponsor’s expense money plus trophy
3rd $300 sponsor’s expense money plus trophy

and
Individual trophies to tournament MVP and All-Tournament team selections

Mail check to: Rice Lake Orangemen
Post Office Box 202
Rice Lake, WI 54868

2013 Tournament Directors: Loren Lathrop (Phone 608-575-6521), Ronn Kopp (Phone 715-651-5961)