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The Inaugural Season
It was the summer of 1991 and they were tired as they sat watching their daughters play softball in Ohio for the 12 & under Steele Blue out of Sterling, Va. The previous two weekends Gary Fillmann and Bobby Hall were in Tennessee and North Carolina doing the same exact thing, watching Sherry and Angel play fast pitch softball. While they liked the level of competition they were seeing, they were quickly becoming less enchanted with the time and expense associated with traveling from state to state. So after seeing three teams from Maryland in the Ohio Tournament, they decided to start a team the following year and play tournaments a lot closer to home.
So that fall, Gary and Bobby started recruiting players they thought could play for a summer travel team. Their days coaching Calvert American Little League provided them with the necessary scouting reports. After a meeting with parents and players to explain the rigors of playing an ASA summer schedule, it was time to get started with this 14 & under team based in Calvert County. The first chore was to name the team. All the girls liked the idea of some connection to the water because of the location of the county. The final choice came down to The Chesapeake Diamonds or
The Bayside Blues . And by a show of hands, the team became The Bayside Blues . The next chore was to pick the colors. The coaches stepped in and said that since water was involved, then royal blue and white should do just fine.They started practicing in the spring at the Calvert High School field in anticipation of their first summer season. In May of 1992, the following girls took the field as The Bayside Blues
from Calvert County: Angel Hall, Sherry Fillmann, Kristi Peel, Jackie Woodford, Lisa Wood from Calvert High School, Taryn McDonald, Sarah Colea, Melanie Kriner, April Watson, Debbie Sydnor from Northern High School, Carrie Capp from Chopticon High School, Sandy Potanka from St. Mary’s Ryken, Kelly Bradford from Riverdale Baptist, and Andrienne Nalepa. Most of these young ladies graduated high school in 1995 or 1996 and played at the collegiate level. They were coached by Gary Fillmann and Bobby Hall, who received a tremendous amount of support from their wives, Loretta Hall and Lynn Fillmann.They played in 11 tournaments in Maryland and Virginia that first year and finished a little above .500. Some of the tournaments included Lakeshore, Bay Country Moose, Riveria Beach, and Marylanders. The tournaments cost $225.00 each to play in. Uniforms consisted of one pair of blue shorts, one white shirt, and one blue shirt for a total uniform cost of $20.00 PER PLAYER. Bat bags, helmets, and jackets would not come until the following year. The biggest challenge for the team was fundraising. Support for young ladies playing fast pitch was unheard of. They persevered and were able to raise enough money to pay most of their bills with the coaches making up any differences.
That team went on to play at the 16 and under and 18 & under levels as the Bayside Blues and won several tournaments. In talking to Gary Fillmann, who provided the historical information, he could not say enough about the good times that were had by the players and parents. It was like one big family. He was very proud of the talent and competitiveness of his players. It was quite rewarding to see the girls play very competitive teams and rise to the occasion. Those girls were the first to prove that you did not have to be from Virginia or Anne Arundel County to be solid softball players.
Gary continues to be involved in softball as a man in blue, the ump’s blue. He shared several stories from ball parks where he hears people discussing different softball organizations, and the message on
The Bayside Blues is always the same, they are a quality and class organization who has stood the test of time. We thank our predecessors for their efforts and wish The Bayside Blues a Happy 10thBirthday .**A special thank you goes out to Gary Fillmann and Mike Kriner for their time and assistance in gathering information for this article.