STMA NAMES AWARD WINNERS “Mowing Patterns Contest” winner announced by STMA

Te Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) announced that Britt Barry was chosen as the winner in their fourth annual “Mowing Patterns Contest.” Barry is the sports turf manager at the Dayton Dragons in Dayton, Ohio. Barry was selected via a Facebook voting contest from October 21 to November 18 for his intricate design at Fifth Tird Field, home to the Dayton Dragons, Single-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds.

Britt Barry

Formerly the head groundskeeper at the Lexington Legends, the Single-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, Barry's resume includes previous stints with the Brooklyn Cyclones, Dragons and the New York Mets. He graduated from Wilmington College of Ohio with a bachelor's degree in agriculture and agronomy.

STMA and MiLB Announce 2016 “Sports Turf Manager of the Year Awards”

STMA and Minor League Baseball (MiLB) recently announced the 2016 “Sports Turf Manager of the Year Awards" sponsored by STMA and John Deere. Tese awards, given since 2000, honor members who manage fields in Triple-A, Double-A, Single-A and Short Season or Rookie divisions. Te awards were presented at the annual Major League Baseball Winter Meetings awards luncheon in National Harbor, MD.

2016 Award winners are: • Triple-A – Casey Griffin, Albuquerque Isotopes (Albuquerque, NM) • Double-A – Brock Phipps, Springfield Cardinals (Springfield, MO) • Single-A – Greg Burgess, Greenville Drive (Greenville, SC)

• Short Season or Rookie – Matt Neri, State College Spikes (State College, PA)

Phipps is being honored for the fifth time in his career and fourth consecutively (2008, 2013, 2014, 2015). Burgess is a second-time winner (2008), while Griffin and Neri are first-time winners, joining an elite class of sports turf managers. Additionally, Griffin was the inaugural winner of STMA's "Stars and Stripes" contest in July.

Winners are selected via a 16-member awards committee, compiled by STMA. Each nominee is independently scored on cultural practices, game day routine, resource utilization, staff management and the groundskeeper's involvement and support of the sports turf industry.

STMA’s 2016 “Field of the Year Award” Winners

Since 1992, STMA’s “Field of the Year Award” is presented to members who manage baseball, football, soccer, softball and other sporting playing surfaces at the professional, collegiate, schools (K-12) and parks and recreation level. Te 2016 winners are:

Professional • Baseball – Smokies Stadium at Tennessee Smokies (Kodak, TN): Anthony DeFeo, Certified Sports Field Manager (CSFM), Head Groundskeeper

• Soccer – Toyota Park at Chicago Fire (Bridgeview, IL): Joel White, Turf Manager

• Sporting Grounds – Infinity Park at City of Glendale (Glendale, CO): Noel Harryman, CSFM, Manager Turf Operations

College and University • Baseball – Pacer Field at Marywood University (Scranton, PA): Rob Galdieri, Sports Turf Manager

• Football – Spartan Stadium at Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI): Amy Fouty, CSFM, Athletic Turf Manager

• Soccer – Merlo Field at University of Portland (Portland, OR): Kevin White, Athletic Field Manager

• Softball – Pacer Field at Marywood University (Scranton, PA): Rob Galdieri, Sports Turf Manager

• Sporting Grounds – 5/3 Bank Stadium at Kennesaw State (Kennesaw, GA): Shane Hohlbein, CSFM, Sports Turf Manager

Schools and Parks • Baseball – Te Nest at Clover School District (Clover, SC): Will Rogers, CSFM, Sports Turf Manager

• Football – Carson Stadium at Christ Church Episcopal School (Greenville, SC): Brian Dossett, CSFM, Head Sports Field Manager

• Soccer – White River Soccer Complex at Noblesville High School (Noblesville, IN): Joshua Weigel, Grounds Superintendent

• Softball – Champs Field at Gulfport SportsPlex (Gulfport, MS): Ken Edwards, CSFM, Sports Turf Manager

• Sporting Grounds – Raiders Stadium at Atlee High School (Mechanicsville, VA): Marc Moran, CSFM, Agriculture/Horticulture Instructor

Moran has now received this honor four times (2006, 2009, 2010), each in a different sporting category. Tree-time winners include Harryman (2012, 2013), Rogers (2014, 2015) and Weigel (2012, 2014). Two-time winners Fouty (2013), White (2013) and Hohlbein (2015).

A panel of 11 judges independently scored entries based on playability, appearance of surfaces, utilization of innovative solutions, effective use of budget and implementation of a comprehensive agronomic program. Judges may choose not to award a field in each category.

56 TPI Turf News January/February 2017