Nov. 12, 2009
For Immediate Release
Contact: Bo Carter
214-418-6132
Longtime writer given association's annual service honor
CHASE WINS WILBUR SNYPP AWARD

DALLAS (NCBWA)Al Chase, who has covered college baseball for 30 years, is the 35th recipient of the Wilbur Snypp Award, presented annually by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association for outstanding contributions to college baseball.

"I am totally surprised at receiving this award," Chase said. "It is an honor to be included in the list of distinguished recipients. My thanks to all NCBWA members. It was a pleasure to cover so many great players and outstanding coaches in both dugouts at the University of Hawaii's Les Murakami Stadium all those years."

"I also am proud to have established the criteria for the annual active and retired baseball coaches career lists," he added. "Compiling that list for 10 years in the '80's before handing the task over to the NCAA would not have been possible without the tremendous cooperation of the Division I sports information directors."

"Al Chase has been one of the top college baseball writers, and, for that matter, one of the top sports writers in the country for 39 years," said NCBWA executive director Bo Carter. "He has been a very active participant in NCBWA, college baseball polls and many other areas, and this is a long-overdue and well-deserved honor. He is one of the classiest people in the sports media industry."

Chase introduced the first NCBWA poll in the 1970s and early 1980s. He covered the 1980 NCAA College World Series, many conference tournaments and mainland series along with covering college baseball in Hawaii for 30 years. He is a great friend of the NCBWA and retired from the Honolulu Star-Bulletin in 2007 after being a sports writer for 39 years.

Al covered Hawaii's 1980 trip to the NCAA College World Series where the Rainbow Warriors finished second to Arizona and World Series MVP Terry Francona, future manager of the Red Sox. He also covered Hawaii College Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Derek Tatsuno during his 20-win season in 1979 when he became the first Division I pitcher to reach that mark. Al wrote one of the most well-read columns in Hawaii and also was the beat writer for the University of Hawaii’s women’s soccer and women’s basketball teams. He has covered over 900 Hawaii home baseball games since 1968.

The Mansfield, Mass., native is a graduate of the University of Hawaii in 1966, and lives in Hawaii with his wife, Lee.

Chase joins an illustrious group of College Sports Information Directors of America Hall of Famers, noted national journalists and others in receiving the award. The plaque memorializes longtime Ohio State sports information director and NCBWA founder the late Wilbur (Bill) Snypp. Snypp was a noted contributor to the writers' organization, which was initiated in 1962 (and celebrating its 48th year in 2009), as well as an officer in the group. The NCBWA/Wilbur Snypp Award yearly honors a professional for contributions to the sport of collegiate baseball. Voting is done by a panel of previous winners, who include past NCAA World Series officials, SIDs, award-winning media members, and college athletics administrators.

ALL-TIME WILBUR SNYPP AWARD WINNERS
1975 Wilbur Snypp, Ohio State
1976 Bill Esposito, St. John's
1977 Phil Langan, Cornell
1978 John Geis, Southern Conference
1979 Hank Schomber, Georgia Southern
1980 Bob Culp, Western Michigan
1981 Lou Pavlovich Sr., Collegiate Baseball
1982 Tom Price, South Carolina
1983 Bob Bradley, Clemson
1984 Robert Williams, Omaha World-Herald
1985 Jerry Miles, NCAA
1986 Larry Keefe, Seton Hall
1987 Tom Rowen, San Jose Mercury-News
1988 Fred Gerardi, KESY Radio, Omaha
1989 Jim Wright, NCAA
1990 Steve Weller, SIU-Edwardsville
1991 Bill Little, Texas
1992 Kirk Bohls, Austin American-Statesman
1993 Bo Carter, Southwest Conference
1994 Lou Pavlovich Jr., Collegiate Baseball
1995 Steve Pivovar, Omaha World-Herald
1996 Gary Johnson, NCAA
1997 Dave Wohlhueter, Cornell
1998 Allen Simpson, Baseball America
1999 Alan Cannon, Texas A&M
2000 Jim Callis, Baseball America
2001 Dick Case, USA Baseball
2002 Russ Anderson, Conference USA
2003 John Manuel, Baseball America
2004 Dana Heiss Grodin, USA Today Sports Weekly
2005 Dennis Poppe, NCAA
2006 Mike Montoro, Southern Miss
2007 Barry Allen, Alabama
2008 Mike Patrick, ESPN
2009 Al Chase, Honolulu Star-Bulletin
2010 Lou Spry, NCAA
2011 Jeremy Mills, ESPN/D1Baseball.com
2012 Eric Olson, Omaha World Herald
2013 J.D. Hamilton, NCAA
2014 John Sullivan, Rice
2015 David Feaster, Dick Howser Trophy
2016 Ralph Zobell, BYU
2017 Aaron Fitt, D1Baseball.com