NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- The state of Norview baseball might not have been considered good entering 2023. It was a team that did not even have a head coach as the new season neared.
"I'm going to be honest," said junior outfielder Nylan Billups. "I was thinking about transferring at the beginning of the season."
The news of the Pilots' lack of coaches made its way to Norview health and physical education teacher Mariah Stewart.
"It was just kind of like one of those joking things, like 'hey, we need a baseball coach,'" she recalled. "I was like 'I'll be your baseball coach' in a joking manor."
The joke turned serious. Stewart agreed to lead the team as a placeholder of sorts in the winter, performing tasks like handling paperwork and leading the player interest meeting. However, the head coaching job remained vacant on the first day of baseball tryouts.
"I had already stepped up, so I had to continue to step up and then I just didn't want to give it up," Stewart said.
The health and PE teacher assumed head coaching duties of the Pilot baseball program. She asked fellow teacher Angela Williams-Hicks to join her on the staff.
"We share an office," Williams-Hicks said. "We're talking baseball all day. I don't think we get any other work done this season but baseball."
Even though Stewart entered the season with limited knowledge of the sport, Williams-Hicks has a softball background, playing in high school in college. Stewart's husband also was a baseball player so he came on board as an additional assistant. Regardless of any lack of experience on the baseball field, however, the two teachers didn't hesitate to step up to the plate.
"You're senior year of high school, you want it to be your best year," noted Williams-Hicks. "Being able to give that to them just means so much."
"Athletics does have that sort of rigidity to it," Stewart pointed out. "Accountability is another thing that I'm trying to teach these kids."
The players are stepping up as well, both on and off the field.
"First, they respected us just as teachers, coaches and women," said Williams-Hicks. "[They] cleaned the language up a little bit, very respectful."
"It was kind of a change at first," added Stewart. "Now it's like 'OK we're used to this. Thanks Coach. Keep on me. Stay on me, stay on top of my grades, make sure I'm doing the right thing.'"
"The past three years, our team had been really toxic," noted Billups. "We've always been fighting, but this is the first year I've seen all of us come together."
You might say the results have been a home run. The Pilots are winning games and hope their success can keep rolling for the remainder of the campaign.
"Now we're 3-5 and we're just excited that this is one of the best records they've had in the last couple years," the assistant coach said.
"We're definitely doing way better than what most people expected us to do," Billups added. "We had to come together as a team."
Norview baseball gained a season thanks in large part to a new baseball dynamic duo at the school. Both coaches say they don't plan on simply making this a one-year stay with the program for a couple of reasons.
"I love it, oh my gosh. I don't even want to give it up anymore. I love this. This is so much fun," smiled Stewart. "I don't know if I want to be the head coach next year, but I'll definitely be part of the program for awhile."
"Someone very dear to me just passed away," Williams-Hicks said. "Our last conversation was if I would please come back next year and coach her son, so I will definitely be back next year to coach baseball for Norview."
Each coach has experience leading other sports. Stewart is a varsity swim and field hockey coach, while Williams-Hicks coaches basketball and softball.
The Pilots return to action on Friday night when they host Eastern District foe I.C. Norcom.
