OTTAWA - Coming off a gold medal performance at the 2011 OCAA
women's fastball championship, Durham College student-athlete
Shannon Galea has earned top honours as she has
been named the recipient of the 2011 Softball Canada Ethel Boyce
Memorial Award.
The award is given annually to a softball player attending a
Canadian post secondary educational institution who has exhibited
leadership traits and skills. Ethel Boyce was an avid softball
player who had a professional and personal interest in people. She
was particularly interested in young people and helping them to
succeed in life.
Galea was also recognized this season as a Provincial Women's
Softball Association Scholarship award winner.
"I am absolutely honoured to be recognized by both my Provincial
organization as well as Softball Canada on behalf of many other
deserving athletes," said Galea. "I am grateful to receive this
support as it provides me a great outlook on the things that I have
accomplished and the things I have yet to achieve. Although my
career in post-secondary athletics has consisted of a variety of
involvements in other sports, softball has been my first passion.
To have this recognition only motivates me to continue to work hard
and to share my experiences with young developing athletes in this
great sport."
The Durham Lords most recently won the OCAA Championship for the
16th time in school history. Galea was named the OCAA top pitcher
at the championship and during the regular season.
"While young and growing up and playing for the Oshawa Stingers
where we played at Durham fields - it was a humbling feeling to be
back on my home field," said Galea. "As a kid, watching the Durham
Lords compete was something to idolize when seeing athletes play at
the collegiate level. It was great to be surrounded by my local
softball community of coaches, umpires, teammates and friends to
win an OCAA Championship. Not only is it a full circle, it gives me
a sense of pride to win a championship at home, on a field I know
very well, where I have grown up most of my life."
Last season while attending UOIT, Galea was named the overall
athlete of the year as she was a member of the rowing team as well
as representing the University at the OUA squash championship.
SOFTBALL CANADA WRITE-UP
Shannon Galea is currently taking a one-year graduate diploma in
Sport Business Management at Durham College. She previously
completed an honours degree in Geography and Earth Sciences from
McMaster in 2010, as well as a Bachelor of Education from the
University of Ontario Institute of Technology in 2011. This summer,
she was a member of the Pickering Heat and competed in two Canadian
Championships, winning a silver medal at the Junior (U23) Women's
and finishing seventh in the Senior Women's category.
Source: Durham College