OKLAHOMA CITY —The ACE (Achieve, Certify, Educate Coaching) Coaching Certification Program is designed to provide softball coaches of all levels, from beginning coaches to experienced veterans, an opportunity to certify as a coach with the National Governing Body of Softball. The Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America/USA Softball announced today that Jeremy Cantu (Kyle, Tex.) is the 5,000th coach to register for the 2015 season for the ACE Coaching Certification Program. For a fourth-consecutive year, USA Softball has teamed up with Pocket Radar™ to provide coaches like Cantu with a prize pack. At every odd-numbered 1,000th milestone, USA Softball will award that coach with a brand new Ball Coach Training Tool, courtesy of Pocket Radar™ ($300 value).

Cantu, a coach with Texas USA, got his start in coaching once his daughter, Lauren, took up softball at the age of four. Cantu will be one of the assistant coaches for the 8U Texas Bombers softball team, which his daughter is a member of. This is his first year registering with us and Texas Bombers. 

“The online instructions and tools that ACE offers to coaches are very helpful," said Cantu. “At first, I was a little bit skeptical as to how much the training videos could help me. I was surprised that I took away several good drills that we could use in practice to help our girls learn the fundamentals of the game. Every bit of information helps with teaching and coaching these younger girls.” 

Cantu comes from a baseball background, having played his entire life. He has four years of coaching experience in recreational leagues, starting when Lauren was four-years-old. 

"I’m really excited to be a part of the Texas Bombers this upcoming season and can’t wait to use the Pocket Radar for many years." 

As the National Governing Body of Softball, it is ASA/USA Softball’s responsibility to ensure that our coaches achieve a certain level of understanding of what their duties are as a coach of a softball team. The ACE Certification videos and the ACE Certification Manual are practical guides to the everyday situations you will encounter as a youth softball coach. 

It is highly recommended that all coaches wishing to coach at the Championship Play level or those coaches wanting to receive full ACE benefits become an ACE Certified coach. Coaches can do so online using the ACE Online System on RegisterASA.com. There are four levels to the ACE Program and upon successful completion of each level; benefits include Bollinger insurance coverage, a background check clearance and ID card. For more information on the ACE Online Coaching Certification Program, please contact your local USA Softball Commissioner or visit Ace Coaching Certification. 

About USA Softball
The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation’s largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 70 local associations. The ASA 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. For more information on the ASA, visit //www.usasoftball.com 

About USA Softball 

USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the 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 and have claimed seven World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about USA Softball, please visit //www.usasoftball.com/.