DAPHNE, Alabama - In the year 2012, Baldwin County’s sports teams added trophies to a few already well-stocked cases in high schools along the Eastern Shore.

Bayside Academy’s girls sports programs brought home more team and individual titles than any other school in the county.

LADY ADMIRALS WIN ELEVENTH STRAIGHT VOLLEYBALL TITLE

The Bayside Academy Lady Admirals had to drive a little further this year to pick up their annual state volleyball award, a.k.a., the state championship.

With a state-record eleventh-consecutive state title won over Cottage Hill Christian 25-12, 25-20, 25-12 in straight sets Nov. 1, the Daphne prep school has earned and brought 21 state volleyball crowns back to the Jubilee City since joining the Alabama High School Athletic Association. For Bayside head coach Ann Schilling, the 2012 Class 3A version of the coveted Blue-Map trophy was her 18th in three classifications earned for the school on Mobile Bay in her 25 years at the Lady Admiral’s helm.

The Lady Ads also improved to 65-2 overall, winning their last 61 matches in a row.

“This was a special team,” said Schilling, who has also led B.A. to three state runner-up red-map trophies. “They are all special in their own way, but this (group of players) had so many things you want as a coach and had in abundance. Talent, maturity, work ethic and a great sense of teamwork and individual responsibility for each other. Genuine confidence, not over confident attitudes. Realistic confidence in themselves and each other. My seniors (Gabby Deshotel and Virginia Pittman) have been great role models. All the kids love and respect them and picked up good work habits.”

For Deshotel and Pittman, who were named co-MVPs this year and were second graders when the streak started as well as major contributors to winning the last five state banners, the streak was and is a part of life at Bayside with Schilling leading the way.

“It never gets old,” Pittman said. “But during the season and until it happens we don’t really talk about it that much. (Coach Schilling) teaches you from the beginning that the harder we work the more control we have and so we always practice and play with that in mind.”

Deshotel also said the consecutive run was fun but added that Schilling turns the pressure into a positive thing.

“We’re like a family so we all know it’s there,” she said. “(Schilling) always uses it like a motivator to get better, to keep working.”

Sydney Chandler, who will be a senior next year, said the challenge of repeating next year would be more difficult without 6-foot-3 Pittman and 6-0 Deshotel, but believes her class will work hard for it.

“One game at a time. We know we have a target on our backs all the time. We’re used to it now but we don't take it for granted,” she said.

Pittman led the Admirals in the title match with 16 kills, five blocks, four digs and three aces; Deshotel added 11 kills, three blocks, three digs and an ace; Caffey had eight kills, a block and six digs; Morgan Dulaney had six kills, two blocks, five digs, an ace and an assist; Lauren Chastang scored four kills, a block and a dig.

The 2012 All-Tournament Team included: Chandler, Deshotel and Pittman from Bayside; Rachael Howell and Hannah Wentland of Cottage Hill; Montana Clark of Plainview and Taylor Gill of Madison Academy.

BAYSIDE GIRLS WIN IN CROSS COUNTRY 

Bayside Academy’s Lady Admirals won the AHSAA 3A State Cross-Country meet in November at Jesse Owens Park near Oakville with a 66-71 point victory over strong perennial rival T.R. Miller of Brewton.

With two seventh graders in the top 10 (Mary Catherine Branyon led the Bayside girls with her third-place overall finish and Abigail Warner captured 10th) along with Lady Admiral senior Molly Pinnix who was 12th, sophomore Carlisle Calametti 18th along with freshman Catie Caldwell and junior Bowen Spottswood, the Lady Admirals claimed the 3A Girls Alabama High School State Athletic Association Cross-Country championship.

Bayside head coach Alan Foster was pleased with the result and was not surprised given the effort and talent that came together this fall.

“I could not be happier for the girls team this year, they all gave great efforts and our seniors Dorothy Walton, Iris Harrison and Molly Pinnix did a fantastic job of creating a competitive and positive team dynamic all season.” he said.

The Lady Admirals were led by the three All-State Top-15 performers this year: Branyon, Warner and Pinnix.

“Mary Catherine Branyon, who as a seventh grader finished 3rd overall at the state meet and earlier in the season set a new school record of 19:08 for 5K (3.1 miles) at the (3A) Section Meet, set the tone early for the team by running in the lead pack for the first mile,” Foster added. “Another seventh-grade super-star, Abigail Warner finished 10th as senior Molly Pinnix added another All-State medal to her collection finishing 12th.

“Junior Carlisle Calametti, freshman Catie Caldwell and junior Bowen Spottswood gave strong efforts to help push the Admirals to the top spot on the podium finishing ahead of the T.R. Miller's fifth runner while eighth-grader DeLaney Klutes, senior Iris Harrison, freshman Emi Rudat and Sophomore Kerri Raley rounded out Bayside's top ten."

BAYSIDE GIRLS WIN TRACK CHAMPIONSHIP

It was a big win for the Bayside Academy track and field Lady Admirals team in Selma as the girls claimed the 2012 Class 3A state track and field championship last May.

“This Championship speaks volumes to the amount of desire, focus and competitive spirit that all of these girls have in them,” Bayside coach Alan Foster said. “There is not a more deserving group of young ladies. Charlotte (Gill) and Alona (Melendez) really took these girls under their wings all year.”

A senior Charlotte Gill finished her career at Bayside punctuating the teams victory while anchoring the final and most exciting race of the day — the 4x400 relay— in championship style. Foster added that Gill put it into overdrive and battled back to pass Winfield’s anchor and nearly edge out Sheffield’s anchor for a photo-finish silver medal in the event and helping to secure the team title.

All three teams finished within one-half second of each other for the top three spots and Gill’s efforts only 0.02 (two one hundredths) of a second behind Sheffield, exemplified the type of competitors the Lady Admirals were over both days of competition.

In addition to those important team points, Alona Melendez, a junior, won another three gold medals in the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and triple-jump putting her career total at twelve individual state titles. She also set a new school record in the triple jump and was the meets top scoring athlete with 38 pts.

Trista Barry from Bayside led a first, second and fifth-place (three-out-of-the-top-five) finish in the girls high jump for her first individual state championship, while finishing sixth in the triple jump and ninth in long jump setting personal bests in all three events. Isbel Leatherbury set a personal best in the triple jump placing 11th and helped the team score with huge fifth-place points in the high jump. Melendez was second in the high jump.

Emory Builta led the Bayside throwers while scoring big points in the discus (silver medal) and shot put (sixth place). Ally Hatfield, Sydney Chandler and Builta finished fourth, fifth and 11th in the javelin to cement the win.

“Our young sprinters fought for every spot possible and were led by Carlisle Calametti who torched the 100-meter dash on the Friday with the fastest time in the state and finished third in the finals just getting out-leaned at the tape” Foster said. “She also led our fantastic 4x400 with an eye-popping 61-(second)-flat, quarter-mile leg and outran all competitors on her leg of the 4x100m Relay.”

Emily Wright (400, 4x800 and 4x4 Relay) and Jane Anne Cicco (seventh in the 200 and 4x100 Relay and 4x4 Relay) also played a major role on the final relay team. Ariel Dulaney (100) and 4x100 Relay), Meagan Daves (4x100 Relay), Catie Caldwell (100 Hurdles) and Natalie Kastner (400)) all earned important state meet experience and look to make big splash next year in the world of track and field.

Molly Pinnix, Charlotte Gill, Emily Wright and Bowen Spottswood smashed the school record in the 4x800 pushing Montgomery Academy’s team to a new all-time state record for the silver medal.

“Molly, Charlotte and Bowen came back on day two of the competition to go third, fifth and seventh in the 800. Molly set a new school record in the 800 with Charlotte and Bowen right behind her - setting us up for the all important team win. Charlotte and Bowen also scored big points in the 1600 on day one (5:39 and 5:42 for sixth and eight),” Foster added.