BELLVUE, Wash. – Alumni and current Baseball Coach Michael Urnikis is receiving the HERO Sports Award for years of sponsorship and selfless dedication to the sport of baseball and Basketball. He receives this award a year after being inducted into the Eureka College Sports Hall of Fame for baseball and basketball. A three-time NAIA All American Award winner Urnikis was a rare two sport player for the Red Devils. He won Defensive Player honors at first base in 1997 as well as being recognized in 1998 and 1999 for his stellar pitching for the school. A position he still holds records with at Eureka for shutout games, strikeouts in a season and most strikeouts in a game. He also won All American honors when he led the Red Devil’s in scoring his junior year in basketball.

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Upon graduating from Eureka College Urnikis was hired as an assistant coach for baseball by Mike Napoleon at New Trier High School in Northfield IL. It was the beginning of a long successful coaching career for the former ballplayer who has also coached at Chicago Christian Academy as well as consulting at numerous colleges for pitching. Urnikis earned certification with the NPA (National Pitching Association) to better understand pitching and how to teach it. He has also coached and helped with travel baseball organizations around the Midwest suburbs of Chicago as well as spending over 15 years umpiring for the Southwest Umpire Association. According to Mike Napoleon, “Coach Mike was a tremendous resource for all the kids and one of the best coaches I’ve worked with. He has a way of just knowing how to help kids who are struggling and communicate it in a way that makes sense to them. He was selfless even going as far as buying equipment for the boys out of his own money, staying late to work with kids and even working with the boys helping them get recruited to colleges so they can keep playing baseball.”

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Urnikis was nominated for the award by over a dozen former baseball and basketball athletes who he helped get recruited to colleges. The Hero Award honors Michael Urnikis for his selfless actions with helping young athletes in a variety of inspirational ways. This award also recognizes him for raising over $10,000 for the MS Half Court Classic, $12,000 for the Buffalo Grove Bearcats scoreboard, and over $8,000 for the Turn Two for Youth charity that helped give under privileged youth access to new and used baseball equipment.