Paladin Softball Club
Coaching Staff
10U
Justin Eden
Happily married for eight years, Coach Eden is a proud father to a nine-year-old daughter, Kaitlynn. Born and raised in Mesa, Arizona, he has a strong passion for sports, having played semi-pro football and coached at that level for a total of three years. Over the past four years, he has coached his daughter’s teams in softball (coach pitch and fastpitch) and volleyball, while also bringing his experience to baseball and soccer.
This is Coach Eden’s first season with Paladin, but his involvement with East Valley leagues goes back to his childhood. He is thrilled to coach and inspire young athletes, believing that with dedication and hard work, they can achieve anything they set their minds to. His goal is to help the girls grow, showing them that it’s possible to be both competitive and have fun at the same time.
10U
Kayla Heath
Coach Kayla started playing softball at 3 years old. She began pitching at 9 years old. Kayla competed throughout the U.S.
Her softball career continued through the collegiate level. She assisted coaching the last 2 years for youth softball.
12U
Trey Colburn
Trey, a Marine and former Law Enforcement officer, brings years of coaching experience. Together with his wife Jenna for 23 years, they enjoy adventures with their three kids – Montana, Harlee, and Bradley. Operating a youth recreation facility in San Tan Valley is their passion, focusing on character-building, athlete training, and impacting lives positively.
Trey is eager to impart his wisdom on life and physical movement to his players. Additionally, he is a member of the Positive Coaching Alliance and oversees a non-profit dedicated to coaching development and holistic athlete growth. In the past 5 years, Trey has been teaching baseball and served as an assistant softball coach for 3 years.
16U
Derek Wendt
Derek Wendt is happily married to his wife, Kristen of eight years and is a proud father to two daughters, Makayla and Audrey, and two boys, Jameson and Axl. He was born in Orange County, CA and has resided in the East Valley for the past five years.
Derek has been involved in coaching boys baseball and girls fastpitch softball for the past five years with the Queen Creek Heat Majors and Jr./Sr. Division. He has also coached Lady Cubs Softball 12U and Paladin t-ball and coach pitch baseball. He enjoys following basketball and football as well.
He is passionate about creating and inspiring a positive environment for kids and Derek’s goals are to build confidence, motivation and direction so kids can achieve their personal goals and work together to achieve team goals.
10U – Cook
HC: Dan Cook
Dan Cook is a husband and father of two wonderful girls. He is a valley native, born and raised in Mesa and he has been coaching softball for the past eight years.
Dan is also a Big Brother for the Big Brothers program here in Arizona. He has been involved in coaching recreational sports for the past 10 years and previously served on the board of directors for San Tan Valley Little League.
He is passionate about being a positive role model for kids and Dan’s goal is to empower kids to achieve their dreams on and off the field. |
10U – Johnson
HC: AJ Johnson
Coach AJ has enjoyed coaching the next generation since his college days coaching youth football and baseball. The opportunity to coach his own children has only served to further ignite his enthusiasm and over the past six years he’s been blessed with opportunities to coach multiple recreational teams in Maricopa, including flag football, soccer, softball and baseball. He has most recently served on the Board of Directors for Maricopa Little League and coaching softball.
As coach and leader, AJ’s philosophy is that of developing character, sportsmanship, and teamwork with foundations in the fundamentals, affirmation, gentle correction, and individual accountability.
He and his wife Mandy enjoy a blended family of four children ranging from 3 to 10 years of age. They’ve made their home in Maricopa, AZ. AJ holds a BS.J in Criminal Justice/Justice Studies from ASU where he played collegiate sports and developed his desire for excellence in youth sports and development. He also holds a MBA in Finance and Accounting.
14U – Powe
HC: Dan Powe
Bio Coming Soon
14U – Powe
AC: Todd Trollope
Todd and his wife Heidi have been married for 24 years and have resided in the east valley of Phoenix since 2003. They are raising two wonderful children, Mikayla (12) and Tanner (10). He was born and raised in Billings, MT and grew up in a family where sports and competition were always present and encouraged. After finishing High School where he competed in both basketball and Legion baseball, Todd continued his athletic journey playing baseball in college at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD. After graduating from Augustana, he coached 4 years of Babe Ruth and Legion baseball while finishing his MBA at the University of Montana.
Now that Mikayla and Tanner are starting their own athletic journeys, Todd has been found on the sidelines of the softball/ baseball fields and basketball courts for the last 6 years coaching them and their teammates how to play these games and enjoy the fellowship of their teams. His goal is to create an environment where the athletes are encouraged to challenge themselves and grow both their game and life skills through the lessons learned in competition and being part of a team.
