‘Much larger honour': Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame call humbling, exciting

Winnipeg Free Press

19-07-2025

Ashley Lanz was very confused when the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame reached out to say she's in the 2025 induction class.
She was put into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame in 2017 and didn't realize this was a completely different honour. She picked up the phone to call her mom who assured her that yes, she had already been recognized.
'I was like 'Did they not check their records or something?' It was a blonde moment,' laughed Lanz.
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Ashley Lanz was inducted into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame in 2017.
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Ashley Lanz was inducted into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame in 2017.
'So, I immediately called them back saying 'I think you made a mistake, like, I've already been inducted into the Softball Hall of Fame.' And he goes 'No, honey, this is the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame.' And I was like 'Oh my God,' and so embarrassed. And then also, the realization and the excitement then hit because this is a totally different thing and obviously, a much larger honour to be considered and accepted into this. The wave of emotions hit me at that point.'
This year's class, which was announced Wednesday, also features longtime Winnipeg Blue Bombers kicker Troy Westwood, Olympian and Brandon University athletic director/volleyball coach Russ Paddock, sport medicine leader Glen Bergeron, builder Col. Gary Solar (multi-sport) and the 1987 Lucania Football Club soccer team that won a senior men's national title.
The Winnipegger was standout pitcher for the Canadian national team and captured gold at the 2007 FISU Games and silver at the 2011 Pan Am Games. She was named to the First-Team All-Conference at Minot State before transferring to Simon Fraser where she was the NAIA Pitcher of the Year in 2005. She also pitched professionally overseas where she won league titles in Czech Republic and Netherlands.
Not a bad career for someone who was told when she was 13 that she wouldn't amount to anything as a pitcher.
'I just always had a passion for it. I was never one to play for stats, or strikeouts or anything like that. I was just very competitive. There were times when people came up to me and said 'You got a no hitter.' and I'd be like 'I did? I had no idea.' For me, it wasn't about that, it was about doing my part to win and be a part of a team,' said Lanz.
'I pitched seven games in one day one time. I pitched with a broken finger. I remember one nationals my back was so sore that I couldn't even sit down, and I pitched the whole tournament, pretty much all by myself. I feel like there's been a lot of physical hurdles, mental hurdles, and different barriers and whatnot, but since I loved it so much, I kept doing my job.'
Lanz, 41, now lives in Minot and owns a speech therapist practice. She was recently a pitching coach at Minot State.
'I'm really humbled and grateful for this,' she said.
MARC GALLANT / FREE PRESS FILES
Troy Westwood goes nuts after kicking a 55-yard field goal to win a game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders- Winnipeg defeated Saskatchewan in 2003.
MARC GALLANT / FREE PRESS FILES
Troy Westwood goes nuts after kicking a 55-yard field goal to win a game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders- Winnipeg defeated Saskatchewan in 2003.
This also isn't the first Hall call for Westwood. The product of Dauphin was added to both the Augustana College Hall of Fame and Winnipeg Football Club Hall of Fame in 2011.
'I was walking around inside the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame (on Wednesday) and saw things from (Philadelphia Flyers legends and fellow Manitobans) Bobby Clarke and Reggie Leach and stuff like that,' said Westwood.
'To be associated at any level whatsoever with some of the truly awesome athletes that are in there already, just to be in that circle, somewhere on the fringe, it's just really cool, man.'
Westwood certainly isn't on the fringe. He played 18 seasons for his hometown Bombers (1991-2007, 2009) and ranks fourth all-time in CFL history in career points with 2,748. Westwood, who grew up selling popcorn and peanuts at the old stadium, was a two-time East Division all-star and once named to the all-CFL team.
'I remember distinctly in my 17th year, sitting on the ground when all the other guys were in their meetings and I was looking around the locker room shaking my head as I just still couldn't believe that I was in there,' said Westwood, 58.
'Not a day did I ever take for granted of being a Blue Bomber. It was a dream from when I was five years old, telling my dad that I would one day be the kicker for the Bombers.'
You could argue Westwood deserved to go in as an athlete/builder for being the one responsible for the Banjo Bowl.
'Yeah, I'm gonna talk to the committee about that, maybe that was overlooked. I'm having a meeting next week with Wade Miller about possibly getting a statue erected as the godfather of the Banjo Bowl, right next to Bud Grant. We'll see if that comes to fruition,' said Westwood, sarcastically, of course.
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1987 Lucania Football Club
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1987 Lucania Football Club
The 1987 Lucania team is one of the most iconic amateur soccer clubs in Manitoba history. Making their run even more special is the fact they won the Canadian crown in Winnipeg in front of friends and family.
'We started off poorly, we were then able to recruit a few players from the Winnipeg Fury who were just starting out and were releasing some players,' said head coach and general manager Michael Nardiello.
'And then, we kind of just took off. It was our first time winning the MSA Cup and going to nationals, and it was in Winnipeg at the U of M, and we ended up winning it all.'
'For our group, it was like a World Cup win.'
Nardiello, who still runs the club today, expects there will be a dozen or more players at the induction ceremony on Nov. 6 at the Victoria Inn.
'I see and speak to lots of the guys still,' said Nardiello. 'Of course, when I sent them the email about this, they were super excited.'
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Taylor AllenReporter
Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.
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