INDIANAPOLIS- The Great Midwest Athletic Conference is pleased to announce Victor Canales as its Supervisor of Softball Officials. The 38-year veteran of officiating will oversee the selection and assignment of officials for softball contests hosted by the G-MAC member institutions. The move comes after the retirement of Art Hill, who held the role during the league’s first 14 years.
 
“I'm excited for the opportunity to help college softball, and specifically the Great Midwest Athletic Conference,” said Canales. “My goal is simple, give the teams and the officials the best chance for a quality officiated game. I hope that we can continue to grow officials across the Midwest.”
 
The veteran official also serves in the same role for several other conferences including the Crossroads League, Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC), Midwest Athletic Conference, North Coast Athletic Conference, and the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference. 
 
“Victor brings a tremendous level of experience and professionalism to this role,” said Great Midwest Athletic Conference Commissioner Tom Daeger. “His longstanding involvement in collegiate softball and his strong relationships within the umpire community make him an outstanding choice to lead our softball umpire program. We are confident that Victor will help continue to elevate the quality and consistency of umpiring across the Great Midwest while providing excellent service to our member institutions and student-athletes.”
 
Canales, a Kenosha, Wisconsin native, began his officiating career at age 14. He has since progressed into serving the umpiring community at all levels, from Division I, to Junior College, to NAIA. He actively serves as a clinician and instructor for collegiate softball umpires, providing on-field evaluations, classroom, instructions, and individualized mentorship at camps and clinics across the country. He was selected as an NAIA World Series Umpire in 2014, 2015, and 2019. Most recently, Canales served as part of the Umpire Chief Crew at the 2023 Women’s Professional Fastpitch Championship.
 
In addition to fastpitch, Victor has also officiated college soccer, basketball, and Division I baseball.  His role as G-MAC Supervisor of Softball Umpires commenced on July 1.