Rosters announced for 2018 Slow Pitch National Teams

BY CODI WARREN (CWARREN@USASOFTBALL.COM) | MARCH 22, 2018, 3:11 P.M. (ET)

Brett Rettenmeier will represent the USA Futures Team.

OKLAHOMA CITY — USA Softball has announced today the 2018 rosters for both the USA Softball Men's Slow Pitch National Team and USA Softball Men’s Slow Pitch Futures Team (Futures Team).  With a roster of 11 National Team veterans and three rookies, the Men’s Slow Pitch National Team looks to reclaim the Border Battle title while nine Futures Team veterans and five rookies comprise the Futures Team.  

In addition to both rosters being named, the location and dates for Border Battle X have also been announced.  The 10th edition of this annual event will return to Kitchener, Ontario, Canada and be played July 27-29 at Peter Hallman Ballyard.

Click here to see the 2018 USA Softball Men’s Slow Pitch National Team Roster

Highlighting this year’s Slow Pitch National Team are first-time National Team members Cory Briggs (Siloam Springs, Ark.) and Ryan Harvey (Clearwater, Fla.), who were both members of the 2017 Futures Team.  Also returning to the roster is 2017 USA Softball Male Slow Pitch Athlete of the Year Dale Brungardt (Vancouver, Wash.) and Brian Wegman (Hamilton, Ohio), who has been named to the Slow Pitch National Team since the inaugural roster in 2009.  Joining the National Team for the first time as a member of Team USA is Ben Dunn (League City, Texas).

The team will be coached by Brett Helmer (Cicero, N.Y.), who was announced as the Head Coach of Team USA last November.  Helmer will be joined by Assistant Coaches Todd Ankney (Lake Villa, Ill.) and Tim Barnes (Gladewater, Texas).

“I'm really looking forward to getting this group of players on the field together,” said Helmer.  “We have a great mix of talent at all positions as well as a group that is hungry to bring the Border Battle title back to the USA!"

Created in conjunction with the inaugural Border Battle slow pitch competition against Canada in 2009, the Men’s Slow Pitch National Team program is now in its 10th season.  Last year, Team USA fell to Canada 31-28, but the U.S. has captured seven Border Battle titles in the history of the event.

Click here to see the 2018 USA Softball Men’s Slow Pitch Futures Team Roster

Highlighting this year’s Futures Team is five-time Futures Team member Faron Miller (Goshen, Ind.).  Representing Team USA for the first time are Brad Carlsen (Sparks, Nev.), Travis Houseman (Urbandale, Iowa), Ryan McClanahan (El Cajon, Calif.), Jordan Spaulding (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Adam Ussery (Benton, Ark.).

The team will be coached by Rob Humphrey (Burlington, Iowa), who has served as the Head Coach for the Futures Team since 2016.  Joining Humphrey as Assistant Coach is Denny Crine (Henderson, Nev.)

“I would like to thank Brett Helmer and USA Softball for once again trusting me with the honor and privilege of leading this team and wearing these colors,” said Humphrey.  “I am very excited about this year’s Border Battle and our opportunity to return to Canada.  They had a tremendous showing of support when we were there in 2014 and I expect the same this year.  The Futures lineup has an impressive mix of talented veterans and much-deserved new faces and I believe our strength will be in our defense.  The Futures Team has always played with an edge, and I predict this year’s team will bring that same passion to the field.” 

Both of the Men’s Slow Pitch rosters and the USA Softball Women’s Slow Pitch National Team, which will be announced at a later date, are slated to compete against Canada’s Men’s and Women’s Slow Pitch National Team rosters.  In addition to their respective National Teams, USA Softball and Canada will also be represented by grassroots organizations.  For Canada, East and West rosters will participate in the men’s division while USA Softball will send OC (Grimes, Iowa) for the men’s division and On Point (Grimes, Iowa) in the women’s division.  A complete schedule for Border Battle X will be announced at a later date while tickets are expected to go on sale on May 1 through Softball Canada.

Fans can follow along with the USA Softball National Team Program all season long at USASoftball.com.

About USA Softball
USA Softball is a 501(c)(3) not-for profit organization headquartered in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is designated as the National Governing Body (NGB) of Softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. One of the nation’s largest sports organizations, USA Softball sanctions competition in every state through a network of 69 local associations and has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 150,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than 2 million.  USA Softball is dedicated to providing people of all ages the opportunity to play the game they love at a variety of levels by offering recreational, league, tournament and competitive play for fast pitch, slow pitch and modified pitch.  USA Softball annually conducts thousands of tournaments throughout the country including over 100 National Championships.  The USA Softball umpire program is among the nation’s largest and are widely known as the best trained umpires in the game. 

As the NGB for the sport of softball, USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting the six USA Softball National Teams that compete in events such as the Olympics, Pan American Games, World Championships and other international and domestic events. For more information on USA Softball, including its founding and history as the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA), please visit,www.USASoftball.com.