MSHSAA Recognizes Springfield Sports Commission with the Mal Mayse Distinguished Service Award
The Springfield Sports Commission was presented with the Mal Mayse Distinguished Service Award during the MSHSAA Baseball Championships at Ozark Mountain Sports Complex.
The award, presented by the Missouri State High School Activities Association, is one of the Association’s highest honors and recognizes individuals and organizations whose service has had a lasting and meaningful impact on interscholastic activities across the state.
Founded in 1999, the Springfield Sports Commission is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the economic and community development of the region by attracting and hosting high-quality sporting events. Through its mission-driven work, the commission has played a vital role in positioning Springfield as a premier destination for championship competition.
MSHSAA’s partnership with the Springfield Sports Commission spans more than two decades and has helped bring numerous state championship events to the Springfield area. From 2018 to 2022, Springfield hosted the MSHSAA Basketball Show-Me Showdown at JQH Arena and Hammons Center, while Plaster Stadium served as a host site for select Show-Me Bowl football games in 2016 and 2017.
Springfield has also become a consistent home for several MSHSAA championships. The Baseball Championships have been held at the Ozark Mountain Sports Complex since 2021 and will remain there through 2031. The Fall and Spring Softball Championships have been hosted in Springfield since 2010, while the Speech & Debate Championships and Theatre Championships have been held there since 2015.
Additionally, the Girls and Boys Tennis Championships have long been associated with Springfield, and the MSHSAA Golf Championships regularly include Springfield as a host site for at least one classification each year. In 2020, Springfield also hosted the Boys Soccer Championships at Lake Country Soccer Complex during the COVID-19 pandemic, further demonstrating its flexibility and commitment to student-athletes.
The success of these events is made possible in part by the Springfield Sports commission’s leadership, led by Executive Director Lance Kettering.