By Maria Beam Gray

 

It’s been a decade since Annapolis Area Christian School hung a softball title banner and head coach George Billett and team are looking to be the squad on deck to repeat the feat.

 

Unbeaten in conference play, the Eagles sit atop the standings in the IAAM “C” line-up and are focused on walking off with a championship crown when playoffs kick-off.

 

“We’ve gelled together as a team,” said Billett, who’s in his first season at the helm as AACS’ head coach after assisting last year. “Every player picks each other up and the communication on the field between the girls has been exceptional.”

 

With two standout pitchers in rotation on the mound, an infield thriving on the importance of non-stop talking to each other as they run textbook plays, and an outfield on the ready, AACS’s defense is as formidable as a slugger facing Boston’s storied green monster.

 

 

“The connection, passion, and love we all have for this sport is what brings us together,” praised the lone senior on the team, pitcher and captain Brooke Fitzgerald, who's hopeful her graduation cap tassel will adorn some championship hardware. “But it's also our relationship off the field - no drama, no disrespect, no bad energy - that’s a big factor.”

 

 

After years of coaching travel softball and a stint at Arundel, Billett finds himself back in familiar territory, coaching his daughter Sarah. Sarah is a junior captain and the other pitcher who’s been windmilling it for wins from the mound.

 

“Playing softball for AACS means community to me and we’re not just a team, we're family on and off the field,” reflected Sarah. “When you play with a group of girls like we have it makes all the difference because when you have that backbone of a community, you know you have it during the game too.”

 

With still a lot of softball to be played the team isn't taking any opponents lightly and are especially intrigued by what the head to head games on the horizon versus currently tied for second place St. Timothy’s and Our Lady of Mount Carmel might bring.

 

Still, there's room to be optimistic as Billett noted, “We broke down the game and the girls are grasping it and improving and they're impressing us every time they take the field.”

 

Next week’s action includes the Eagles hosting Park on April 16th @ 4:30 and then hitting the visitor’s dugout at St. Timothy’s on April 18th @ 4:15.

 

“If we keep playing like we are, we will definitely make it incredibly far,” added Fitzgerald.