SOFTBALL COACH JOHN BYRNE & STAFF NAMED NFCA EAST REGION
COACHING STAFF OF THE YEAR FOR 2007 SEASON

STARKVILLE, MS --- Moravian College head softball coach John Byrne and his staff of assistant coaches Ron Cardinal, Rachel Mowrey, Geoffrey Deen, Mark Bentz and Heather Bortz have been named the 2007 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III East Region Coaching Staff of the Year announced on July 2nd by the NFCA.

Linfield College head coach Jackson Vaughan, along with assistants Lisa Allen, Greg Herman and Ben Blosser, were named the 2007 NFCA Division III Coaching Staff of the Year and the West Region Coaching Staff of the Year after leading the Wildcats to the NCAA Division III National Championship this past May. All eight Regional Coaching Staffs of the Year, which can be found at www.nfca.org, will be honored at the 2007 NFCA Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada this December.

Byrne and the rest of the staff led Moravian to a 35-7 record this season, the squad’s eighth consecutive Commonwealth Conference Championship and the program’s tenth straight NCAA Division III Tournament berth. The Greyhounds won their second NCAA Regional Championship and advanced to the NCAA Division III World Series for the second time in four years.

In his first 14 seasons as head coach of Moravian, Byrne has guided the Greyhounds to a 442-141 record, the school’s first ten NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament berths, two trips to the NCAA Division III World Series with a runner-up finish in 2004, five Middle Atlantic Conference playoff appearances, seven Commonwealth Conference playoff berths and ten Commonwealth Conference Championships. Byrne has been named the Commonwealth Conference Coach of the Year four times and his staff was the NFCA East Region Coaching Staff of the Year in 2003 and 2004 as well.

Byrne’s teams have won at least 23 games in each of his 14 seasons including a 23-8 mark during his debut season in 1994, and nine of those 14 teams have topped the 30-win plateau including the 2004 squad, which was 40-6, a school record for victories by any sport. Byrne has also guided the Greyhounds to the postseason in each of the last 13 years with MAC playoff berths in 1995, 1996, 1997 and 2000; Commonwealth Conference tournament appearances in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 and NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament berths in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007. Moravian has played in the NCAA Regional Championship game the last five years, winning regionals in 2004 and 2007 to advance to the World Series.

Coach Byrne has surrounded himself with an excellent assistant coaching staff with five assistants that have many years of experience. Ron Cardinal is in his 11th season with the Greyhounds and he coaches the infielders. Rachel Mowrey, a record setting pitcher under coach Byrne returns for her third season as a collegiate pitching coach. Geoffrey Deen, a graduate of Moravian, is in his fourth season on the staff and works with the outfielders and catchers while Mark Bentz is in his second season on the staff and also works with the outfielders. Heather Bortz, a record setting shortstop under coach Byrne, is in her second season with the Greyhounds.