Talking about glory days always brings out entertaining stories.
We weren’t short on those Saturday when Stagg softball coaches Sarah Fahey and Bob Dillon and I sat down following that morning’s practice and reminisced about when Chargers softball was the toast of the Southland.
The biggest laugh came when I suggested that Dillon, who has either coached or taught at the school for three decades, is a Stagg lifer.
“They’re going to bury me out there at second base,” he said, grinning.
Even then, Fahey assured, he’d live on.
“He promised me his jacket,” she said with a smile.
And his ever-present sitting bucket?
“Of course,” Fahey said with a laugh. “I might bedazzle it, though.”
Bedazzling is a good word to describe what Dillon and Fahey meant to Stagg softball during those glory days. But we’ll get to that shortly.
The reason we were all together Saturday was to discuss how Fahey — who pitched for Dillon when her maiden name was Sarah Haak — talked him into returning to the field as one of her assistants in her rookie season as head coach.
It didn’t take much convincing, Dillon acknowledged.
“Sarah represents what Stagg softball should be all about,” he said. “She’s dedicated and hard-working. She was the most mentally tough player I ever coached. I know she’ll be able to pass that on to her current players.
“I told her that I yelled at her for a few years when she was a player. Now she can yell at me.”
So nostalgic. So neat. So fortunate for the kids who are playing at Stagg and are getting the best they can get when it comes to coaching and knowledge of what it takes to be successful in softball.
A little history.
Dillon coached Stagg to one of the most incredible four-year runs in Southland softball.
In 1994, the Chargers were 32-5 and a Class AA state quarterfinalist.
In 1995, they were 34-6 and finished fourth
In 1996, they were 31-9 and again a state quarterfinalist.
In 1997, they were 32-9-1 and finished third.
For the first two seasons, Haak was his No. 1 pitcher. She went on to big things at Drake and has been an assistant at Stagg for the past 15 years.
For the last two of those golden seasons, the team leader was Laurie Markatos, a pitcher/shortstop who had a fine college career at Lewis.
Then there was Krista Peterson. Krysten Matlawski. Jenny Markatos. Theresa Karowski. Jessica Richard. Abby and Allison Booth. Jessica Lilja. Jen DiGiacomo. Rachel Gensch. Jenny Tyrrell.
They are just a handful of the kids who made those teams so tough. And the ringmaster was Dillon, a guy who had never even seen a girls softball game before he became a freshman coach a few years earlier.
“Mr. Dillon was a great coach,” said Markatos, now married and a teacher in London. “He pushed us to be our best and always wanted us to be mentally tough. And we were always prepared (for situations).
“He had a lighter side, too, and would let us have fun. It was a good balance within a culture of intensity and high expectations.”
It had a lasting effect on Haak.
“To coach with a balance like that is great,” she said. “A lot of the coaches I have had, I’ve learned how I don’t want to be as a coach. From him, I learned how I do want to coach and interact with my players.”
Dillon coached at Stagg through the 2000 season, finishing with a career record of 206-63, five regional titles, four sectional titles and four supersectionals.
While staying at Stagg as a teacher, Dillon went on to coach softball at Fenwick and Mother McAuley and then in college at South Suburban and Dominican. He was a summer coach for several years with the Oak Park Windmills.
Dillon did a lot of winning, but never any bragging. His postgame line during those glory days at Stagg always was, “Go talk to the players.”
“My philosophy was, it was their team,” Dillon said. “They did the work and they were responsible for the success. I wanted them to take the credit for what they achieved.”
It’s pretty cool that more will get that chance.
Twitter @tbaranek
