ASA/USA Softball members arrive in Louisville for 84th Annual Meeting

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —Over 300 ASA/USA Softball Council Members and guests from all across the country are traveling to Louisville, Ky. as the National Governing Body of Softball in the United States hosts its 84th Annual Meeting at the Galt House Hotel, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America/USA Softball announced today.

During the weeklong event lasting from October 31 – November 6, administrators, players and tournament hosts will participate in a series of meetings to evaluate the needs of the organization along with proposed rule and code changes for all divisions of ASA/USA Softball. Officials from all 15 regions and four territories will also be meeting in addition to committees.

While the majority of the Council Meeting will consist of breakout sessions for the different committees and regions, several special events will be held throughout the week. On Saturday, the annual “Swing For A Cause” golf tournament will take place at the Cherokee Golf Course. All funds collected will benefit the Special Olympics National Games and ASA/USA Softball Special Programs. A bowling tournament will also be held by ASA/USA Softball Special Programs on Tuesday, Nov. 2 at Ten Pin Strike & Spare bowling alley in Saint Matthews.

Later in the evening, ASA/USA Softball will honor eight individuals with the National Softball Hall of Fame induction ceremony. This 35th Annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Banquet will honor the following members: Bonnie Anderson (Springfield, Ore.) - Umpire-Posthumous, John Davide (Centereach, N.Y.) - Slow Pitch Player, Andy Dooley (Thaxton, Va.) - Commissioner, Sue Enquist (San Clemente, Calif.) - Meritorious Service, Mark Ingrao (Falls Church, Va.) - Umpire, Charles Moss, Sr. (Lanexa, Va.) - Meritorious Service, Steve Padilla (Manteca, Calif.) - Fast Pitch Player and Mike White (Eugene, Ore.) - Fast Pitch Player. For all the latest on the Induction Ceremony including streaming on the Induction Ceremony at 7 pm EDT, visit the event page.

The first General Council Session will take place on Sunday, November 1, where all Council Members and guests will hear from ASA/USA Softball President Phil Gutierrez (Southern California ASA/USA Commissioner) and Executive Director Craig Cress on the state of ASA/USA Softball. ASA/USA Softball will also present the 2015 Bright Light Award presented by Musco Lighting will be presented to the Utah Liberty softball team. It is at this session that the Council will have the opportunity to go over all Rule and Code Proposals for the 2016 season in detail before voting takes place on Thursday, Nov. 5.

The Wilson Sporting Goods Awards Luncheon, which honors Council Members for their ‘Years of Service’ and ASA/USA Softball National Championship sites, will be held on Wednesday, November 4. The annual ASA/USA Trade Show will also be held later that day in the Grand Hall as almost 60 exhibitors will be in attendance. The Trade Show features exhibits from cities bidding on the ASA/USA National Championships, equipment manufacturers, softball suppliers, ASA/USA Softball National Office Staff and additional services or products as well. More than 600 Council Members, delegates and visitors are expected to attend.

The 2015 Annual Meeting will conclude on Thursday, Nov. 5 as the final general council session will take place as all code and rule changes will be announced. The ASA/USA Softball Council Members will also decide which cities will host the 2017 ASA/USA National Championships, which is one of the most anticipated decisions made by the council as each ASA/USA National Championship has the potential to have thousands of dollars in economic impact for the host city.

For more information on the 2015 ASA/USA Softball Annual Meeting in Louisville, please visit the event page on ASAUSASoftball.com. Photos and live updates from Louisville will be posted on the ASA/USA Softball Facebook and Twitter pages.

The 85th Council Meeting will take place at the Hilton Shreveport Downtown in Shreveport, La. in November 2016, while the 2017 Council Meeting will take place in Greensboro, N.C.

About ASA/USA Softball
Founded in 1933, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball is the National Governing Body Softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. One of the nation’s largest sports organizations, ASA/USA Softball sanctions competition in every state through a network of 74 local associations and has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 165,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than 2.5 million. ASA/USA is responsible for training, equipping and promoting the six USA Softball National Teams that compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won nine World Championship titles as well as claimed eight World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about ASA/USA Softball, please visit http://www.asausasoftball.com