Month: April 2019

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) is pleased to expand its recognition of member coaches with the announcement of its inaugural Assistant Coach of the Year winners.

These awards salute the efforts of coaches from the various NFCA membership categories for their tireless dedication to the sport of softball and to the continued education, growth and development of young women, both on and off the playing field. All seven of this year’s first class of recipients played a pivotal role in their team’s success during the 2013-14 softball season.

NCAA Division I: Jen McIntyre, Boston University

McIntyre, recently hired as the head coach at the University of Connecticut, coordinated recruiting, compliance, academics and strength and conditioning, plus coached the outfielders and offense, as the Terriers’ associate head coach this past year under Kathryn Gleason. Beyond her coaching, McIntyre’s energy and positive attitude helped guide Boston University to 36 wins and school records in four offensive categories. The Terriers captured the Patriot League title in their first season in the conference and advanced to the NCAA Regionals at the University of Arizona.

NCAA Division II: Kayla Lucas, Georgia College

Lucas serves as the recruiting coordinator, strength, pitching and outfield coach, and also helps with the Bobcats’ hitters. The pitching staff’s ERA dropped a full run under her tutelage and the team’s batting average improved 19 points from the previous season. One of the squad’s outfielders earned first team NFCA All-America status and she ran the entire softball program during the first six weeks of the school year with head coach Jamie Grodecki out on maternity leave.

NCAA Division III: Beth Bonuso, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Bonuso just finished her 13th season assisting head coach Brenda Volk, primarily with the outfielders, but also spending countless hours on the team’s mental preparation. She produces creative and entertaining PowerPoint presentations for the team each week and Volk credits that mental preparation as a primary factor in the squad’s never-say-die attitude en route to a third-place finish at the NCAA Championship this past spring. Every player listed Bonuso’s mental game work as one of the positive things they took away from a very successful season.

NAIA: Craig Fletcher, William Carey University

Fletcher has done anything and everything that head coach Wendy Hogue has needed over the past eight years. From field maintenance to batting practice to supervising weight room workouts, Fletcher has regularly arrived early and stayed late. Hogue said he has always set the bar high and demanded nothing but the best from his players —13 of which have earned All-America status during his tenure — while at the same time being a positive role model for the team and his family.

NJCAA Division I: Karina Cannon, Odessa College

Cannon’s responsibilities on head coach Joel Prickett’s staff include pitchers, catchers, outfielders, international recruiting, camp administrator, pitch calling and opponent scouting. She has coached one first team and two second team NJCAA All-America pitchers, an All-Region catcher, a pair of NFCA first team All-Region players (one pitcher and catcher), an NFCA second team All-America catcher and a NFCA third team All-America pitcher.

NJCAA Division II: Carie Dever Boaz, Northwest Mississippi Community College

Dever Boaz helped the Rangers set single-season school records in eight offensive categories in her first season assisting head coach Mike Rowan. She has over 20 years of experience as a coach at the high school, collegiate and professional levels and is a well-known clinician and author, with five instructional videos to her credit.

High School: Dawn Dziedzic, Monsignor Donovan (N.J.) Catholic

Dziedzic has assisted head coach Debbie Schwartz with all facets of a school’s softball program for the past 24 years, the first 23 together at Toms River East. On game day, she calls pitches and tracks opposing batters to maximize the team’s attack. She showed loyalty to Schwartz by declining to succeed her as head coach at Toms River — despite Schwartz’s recommendation — because she felt Schwartz was treated unfairly there, and instead moved with Schwartz to Monsignor Donovan.

The winners were nominated by their NFCA member head coach and selected by a panel of their peers on the NFCA Awards Committee. The recipients are all active NFCA members.

We’re not out of the woods yet.

Many in the real estate industry have declared that Canada’s housing markets have achieved the much-desired “soft landing,” and the country is not in for a severe housing correction.

But the latest data from the Teranet/National Bank house price index shows house prices in Canada’s largest cities have largely turned negative in the past few months.

House prices fell in October in eight of the 11 cities surveyed in the index, with only Quebec City and Halifax showing any price growth, and prices flat in Victoria.

“In the most expensive markets, new mortgage qualification rules and the rise in interest rates have cooled demand significantly,” National Bank economist Marc Pinsonneault wrote.

“For instance, in Vancouver, November was a fourth month in a row without a rise in home prices, for a cumulative drop of 1.8 per cent. In Toronto, prices declined over the last three months, for a total loss of 0.4 per cent.”

However, prices are still higher than they were a year ago in most of the cities surveyed, except Calgary (down 2.6 per cent) and Quebec City (down 0.3 per cent)

Watch: Vancouver’s historic Eppich House 2 is for sale. Story continues below.

Markets were also particularly weak in the Prairies, where the recent decline in oil prices has hit the economy.

On top of new mortgage rules that have reduced buying power by about 20 per cent, rising interest rates have also been putting downward pressure on the housing market.

But with weaker-than-expected economic data coming in recently, expectations are growing that the Bank of Canada may delay further rate hikes, providing some relief to homebuyers.

“With interest rates set to rise more slowly than previously thought, hopes for a soft landing of the Canadian home resale market are still warranted,” Pinsonneault wrote in a client note.

But even the most optimistic outlooks for the market — such as those put out by real estate agencies — concede that the days of rapid house price growth are likely over in Canada.

In a report issued this week, realtor Re/Max predicted house prices would rise by a tepid 1.7 per cent in 2019, while in a separate report, realtor Royal LePage predicted prices would rise 1.2 per cent next year nationwide.

That may prove to be below the overall rate of inflation, which has been running at a 2.4-per-cent clip recently.

All hail the true king and queen in the North!

“Game of Thrones” co-stars Kit Harington and Rose Leslie tied the knot at a Scottish church on Saturday before heading to a real-life castle for the reception. Harington plays Jon Snow on the hit HBO series, while Leslie played his ill-fated lover, the wildling Ygritte.

The ceremony took place at Rayne Church in Aberdeenshire, followed by a reception at Wardhill Castle ― an estate owned by Leslie’s family, according to the BBC. The guest list was packed with the co-stars from the show, including Emilia Clarke, Sophie Turner and Peter Dinklage, Harper’s Bazaar reports.

The two have dated off and on since 2012, and Harington proposed in September.

Take a look at the pics that were promised, below:

• Mark R. Milan via Getty Images
  Kit Harrington and Rose Leslie departing Rayne Church in Kirkton on Rayne after their wedding on June 23, 2018 in Aberdeen, Scotland. 

• Mark R. Milan via Getty Images
  Rose Leslie arriving at the church.

• Mark R. Milan via Getty Images
  Kit Harington, who clearly knows something about getting married.

• Mark R. Milan via Getty Images
  Rose Leslie arrives at the church with her father, Sebastian Leslie.

• Jane Barlow - PA Images via Getty Images
  Leslie wore a gorgeous lace dress.

• Jane Barlow - PA Images via Getty Images
  After the ceremony at Rayne Church, guests headed over to the reception at nearby Wardhill Castle.

• Jane Barlow - PA Images via Getty Images
  The guest list included multiple “Game of Thrones” costars, including Emilia Clarke and Peter Dinklage.

• Mark R. Milan via Getty Images
  Maisie Williams also attended the wedding.

• Jane Barlow - PA Images via Getty Images
  Real-life BFFS Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams at the wedding.

• Jane Barlow - PA Images via Getty Images
  Best wishes to the couple!

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The agency that regulates offshore safety in Newfoundland and Labrador says all offshore oil rigs in the province’s waters have been temporarily shut down.

The move comes after a Husky Energy facility leaked an estimated 250,000 litres of oil into the sea southeast of St. John’s.

Earlier: French Riviera closes its beaches due to oil spill (story continues below)

If Husky’s estimate of the spill size is correct, it’s the largest oil spill in Newfoundland’s history, CBC News reports.

The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board says in a statement on its website that operations on offshore rigs will not resume until the board determines it’s safe to do so.

Husky Energy says the spill happened Friday when a production, storage and offloading vessel “experienced a loss of pressure” in an oil flowline.

A spokeswoman for the company said earlier that rough seas were hindering workers from containing the spill, but noted there was no indication the spill could reach land.

The board says four surveillance flights and a support vessel have been dispatched to the area, and so far no marine life or seabirds have been seen in the vicinity.

— The Canadian Press, with a file from HuffPost Canada

HOOVER, Ala. — USSSA Pride first baseman GiOnna DiSalvatore singled with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the eighth to give the Pride a 1-0 win over the Akron Racers in the opening game of the best-of-three final for the NPF Championship Series on Friday at the Hoover Met.

Pride pitcher Cat Osterman, the NPF Pitcher of the Year, was dominant early with seven strikeouts through the first four innings.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Pride had a scoring opportunity after a single by right fielder Kelly Kretschman, but on a single by designated player Amanda Kamekona, but leftfielder Jill Barrett threw out pinch runner Breja’e Washington at the plate.

Racers starting pitcher Rachele Fico worked out of a jam in the first. With one out, Pride centerfielder Caitlin Lowe had a ground-rule double to right, then shortstop Madison Shipman walked. With runners on first and second and just one out, Fico struck out USSSA third baseman Andrea Duran and got a fielder’s choice to end the Pride’s half of the inning.

The game was not without controversy. In the top of the fifth, third baseman Kelley Montalvo singled to lead off for the Racers. With two outs, right fielder Ayumi Karino appeared to reach on an infield error when a high pop-up dropped between Osterman, Duran and Shipman. When the play ended, Montalvo was on third and Karino stood on second. However, the umpires held a lengthy meeting and then ruled that Montalvo had interfered with Pride second baseman Courtney Ceo and Montalvo was called out to end the Pride’s inning.

The Racers threatened again in the sixth. Barrett reached on an error by Shipman, and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by shortstop Nerissa Myers. First baseman Charlotte Morgan reached on another error by Shipman, then pinchrunner Olivia Watkins stole second. With runners on second and third and just one out, Osterman struck out designated player Jessica Garcia and then got out of the inning on a nice play by Duran who fielded a line drive off the bat of center fielder Taylor Schlopy after it bounced off Osterman’s leg.

While Osterman allowed just two hits and struck out 11 batters through seven innings, Fico was up to the task as well for Akron, scattering six hits through the first six innings.. The game was scoreless after seven innings and went to extra innings. Through the first seven innings, both teams had stranded six runners; Akron had two hits, while the Pride had six.

Osterman picked up her 12th strikeout of the game, retiring the Racers in order in the top of the eighth.

Then in the bottom of the eighth, Pride leftfielder Natasha Watley left off with a single. After a sacrifice by Lowe, Shipman singled, advancing Watley to third. Sharonda McDonald pinch ran for Shipman; Duran was intentionally walked to load the bases. Then on a 1-1 count with the bases loaded and one out, first baseman GiOnna DiSalvatore singled to center, driving in Watley with the winning run.

Osterman earned the victory, her second of the championship series; she extended her scoreless inning streak in the series to 13 innings. For the game, Osterman allowed just two hits in her eight innings, with one walk and one hit batter; Osterman struck out 12 for the game. Fico took the loss, allowing one run in eight innings on nine hits; Fico had two walks and two strikeouts in seven and a third innings of work.

Akron and USSSA will meet in the second game of the final series today at 2 p.m. ET at the Hoover Met. If Akron wins, the third and deciding game will follow at 4:30 p.m.

— courtesy National Pro Fastpitch

OTTAWA — The federal Finance Department doesn’t expect to have a balanced budget until 2040, but that’s five years earlier than the government predicted last year.

Long-term budgetary projections released Friday morning estimate that by the end of fiscal year 2040-2041, federal books will be in surplus by $1.7 billion.

The Trudeau Liberals promised during the 2015 election to balance the books by the end of their mandate — 2019 — after running small deficits.

Debt expected to reach $960B by 2040

The government’s February budget predicted a deficit of $18.1 billion for the current 2018-19 fiscal year, which ends in March.

The report says federal finances appear sustainable over the long term, with the government’s favoured fiscal number, the federal debt as a percentage of gross domestic product, expected to decline over time. That’s a way of measuring how heavy the debt burden is compared with the size of the national economy rather than just tallying the total the federal government owes.

The government’s debt, which as of October stood at $669.5 billion, is expected to peak at almost $960 billion in the same year the budget reaches balance, the report says.

But the Finance Department warns the projections are based on a number of assumptions about population and economic growth, making the projections “subject to a fair degree of uncertainty.” Nor do they take into account any new government spending or taxes over the coming years.

Watch: Scheer blasts Trudeau for deficits, carbon tax at Tory convention

Ottawa ran a small surplus of $92 million through the first seven months of its fiscal year, compared with a deficit of nearly $6.6 billion in the same period last year, as revenue has increased faster than spending.

According to the monthly fiscal monitor report from the Department of Finance, revenue totalled nearly $186.1 billion between April and October, up about 8.3 per cent from $171.8 billion in the same period last year.

The increase came due to rises in tax revenue,

employment-insurance premiums and other revenues.

Program spending has topped $171.8 billion, up about 3.7 per cent from $165.8 billion over the same stretch last year, while public debt charges so far this fiscal year totalled more than $14.1 billion, up 12.1 per cent from almost $12.6 billion.

For the month of October, which is as far as the latest report goes, the federal government posted a deficit of $1.1 billion, compared with a deficit of about $400 million in the same month last year.

New Spanish research has found that eating your evening meal earlier, or leaving an interval of at least two hours before going to bed, is linked with a lower risk of breast and prostate cancer.

Carried out by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a center supported by the la Caixa Banking Foundation, the new study looked at 621 patients with prostate cancer and 1,205 with breast cancer, as well as 872 male and 1,321 female control participants to see if the timing of meals was associated with risk of the two cancers.

The researchers interviewed the participants on timing of meals, sleep, and chronotype — which is whether an individual shows a natural preference for morning or evening activity.

Participants were also asked to complete a Food Frequency Questionnaire to look at their dietary habits and adherence to cancer prevention recommendations.

The results showed that participants who waited two or more hours after dinner before sleeping had around a 20 per cent lower risk of breast or prostate cancer compared with subjects who slept immediately after.

Eating dinner before 9 p.m. also had a similar protective effect when compared with eating the evening meal after 10 p.m.

The positive effect of leaving a longer interval between dinner and sleep was also more pronounced among participants who adhered to cancer prevention recommendations and in those who were morning types.

The study is the first to analyze the association between cancer risk and the timing of meals and sleep, with previous research focusing instead on dietary patterns, for example, the effects of eating red meat, fruit and vegetables and the associations between food intake and obesity, rather than the timing of food.

“Our study concludes that adherence to diurnal eating patterns is associated with a lower risk of cancer,” commented lead author Manolis Kogevinas, adding that the findings “highlight the importance of assessing circadian rhythms in studies on diet and cancer.”

Dora Romaguera, the last author of the study, also noted that, “Further research in humans is needed in order to understand the reasons behind these findings, but everything seems to indicate that the timing of sleep affects our capacity to metabolize food. Animal experimental evidence has shown that the timing of food intake has ‘profound implications for food metabolism and health.'”

If the findings are confirmed, Kogevinas added that, “they will have implications for cancer prevention recommendations, which currently do not take meal timing into account.”

“The impact could be especially important in cultures such as those of southern Europe, where people have supper late.”

The results can be found published online in the International Journal of Cancer.