Aug. 3, 2006

PHILADELPHIA - Saint Joseph's head softball coach Moo Moyer announced his retirement from the position after five seasons. Moyer compiled 112 wins during his tenure as the Hawks' head coach, the second highest victory total in school history.

Moyer led the Hawks to four Atlantic 10 Championship appearances and during that time, five Hawks were named to both the All-Region Team and the Atlantic 10 All-Conference Team. His overall record was 112-122-1.

In his first year in 2002, Moyer guided Saint Joseph's to its best start in school history, 16-1, before finishing with a 32-17 overall record. He also guided Saint Joseph's to a 12-9 record in A-10 play, placing third in the standings and earning a berth in the 2002 A-10 Championship.

The Hawks continued to excel under Moyer, advancing to the title game of the 2004 A-10 Championship, the best finish SJU has posted. En route to the championship game, the Hawks snapped Massachusetts' 72-game home winning streak.

Despite fielding a lineup of mostly underclassmen, the team entered the 2006 season with expectations for its sixth straight A-10 Championship appearance. The team was plagued with injuries and ended with a 13-38-1 record..

Moyer served as an assistant coach at Saint Joseph's during the final month of the 2001 season, helping the Hawks win seven of their last nine regular season games and place third in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Moyer came to SJU after a highly successful coaching career in the Amateur Softball Association, where he led the Haze Softball Club to two Pennsylvania state championships.

A search for Moyer's successor will begin immediately.

SJU also announced the promotion of Corey Shannon to assistant athletic director for recreation from assistant director of recreation, a position he held for the previous four years. Amber Tyson was named assistant director of athletic communications after serving in the athletic communications office as an intern last year.