Muswaggon Named
Softball Coach of the Year
By Scott Taylor
He has been one of the finest coaches
in Manitoba for a number of years and
now the rest of Canada has noticed.
Softball Canada has announced that
David Muswaggon, the head coach of
the U1-6 Pimicikamak Thunder from
Cross Lake, Man., has been named
Softball Canada’s 2015 Home Run
Sports Coach of the Year.
“I was a bit shocked, it was a
big surprise, when I heard,” said
Muswaggon, via telephone from his
home in Cross Lake. “I was hunting
and suddenly I started getting all these
texts from my friends and family saying
I’d won.
“But I don’t consider it a personal
award. I accept it on behalf of all the
players and all the other coaches and
corporate sponsors and the people
who have helped build our program.
We would not be as successful as we
are without all of them.”
The selection committee wrote
that it “was very impressed by his
contribution to coaching and the sport
of softball over the years.”
“During his career, David has
excelled in many of our Competition
and Development programs most
notably his work with our Northern
Boys Development Program and
the Pimicikamak Thunder Softball
Organization,” Softball Canada wrote.
“David always puts fair play and
community first and would support
any initiative and opportunity for the
northern athletes to play and reach
their dreams.
“We are very proud and appreciative
of his contributions to Softball
Manitoba and will continue to support
his accomplishments in future
endeavors.”
It could be argued that the best
junior fastball being played in Canada
is being played at Pimicikamak Cree
Nation and in late July, Muswaggon
and the youngsters from Cross Lake
won the U-16 Western Canadian
Championship. The Thunder defeated
the Shellbrook, Sask., Rangers 5-3 to
defend their Western Canadian crown.
The victory came as a result of
a dramatic two-run homer in the
bottom of the seventh inning. It was
Pimicikamak’s second straight national
championship.
“We took this team to the Western
Canadians four years and we finished
close to last,” Muswaggon said. “But
that was just the starting point. In the
second year, we finished third, then for
the last two years we won. This year,
after the Westerns, we took the boys
to the Canadians and they were sixth
out of nine teams. I know that doesn’t
sound like a success, but we just looked
at Ontario. They were beating teams
Pimicikamak Thunder Boys Fastball, Coach David Muswaggon far left
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