From left to right: Jay Chance, Kaley Schreiber, Kellieann Tyner, Samantha Greenwell, Stephanie Weyermiller, Hannah Stringer, Gina Fasano, Scott Milligan, Brigitte Garvey, Abby Tyner, Ali Jones and Durrie Hayes. Not pictured: Lindsey Poore, Lindsey Budd and Shayla Loudermilk.
From left to right: Jay Chance, Kaley Schreiber, Kellieann Tyner, Samantha Greenwell, Stephanie Weyermiller, Hannah Stringer, Gina Fasano, Scott Milligan, Brigitte Garvey, Abby Tyner, Ali Jones and Durrie Hayes. Not pictured: Lindsey Poore, Lindsey Budd and Shayla Loudermilk.

Milligan comes full circle to enter HoF

WYE MILLS – Scott Milligan has come full circle.

Dan Fielder, Milligan’s first college coach back in 1989, presented Milligan at Thursday night’s Chesapeake College Athletic Hall of Fame induction dinner.  And Dr. Ed Baker, one of several faculty members who made an impression on Milligan during his two years as a Chesapeake College student, was in attendance as part of the Hall of Fame Selection Committee.

“Every time we took a road trip, I had to ride shotgun next to Coach [Fielder] and soak up everything I could from Coach.  And I think I’m the only person in history to have taken every course Dr. Baker taught,” said Milligan, who went on to become both a title-winning coach and a highly respected high school teacher in his own right.

Both Coach Fielder and Dr. Baker were just as generous in their praise of Milligan.

“It’s not common for your best player to also be your best citizen, but that’s what Scott was for our team,” said Fielder, recalling how Milligan helped lead a small, 12-player squad to a huge upset win over nationally ranked Anne Arundel Community College.

“It’s special when you find somebody that you just know what they should do in life,” said Dr. Baker.  “Scott was a born teacher and coach – enthusiastic and passionate.  I’m sure his students appreciate that.”

Milligan – who coached alma mater Colonel Richardson High to a state championship and won Mid-Shore Coach of the Year honors at both Colonel and Kent County High – is now in his fourth year as an assistant baseball coach at Chesapeake.  He thanked Skipjacks head coach Frank Szymanski for that opportunity during his Hall of Fame induction remarks.

“Thanks, Coach Szymanski, for bringing me back,” Milligan said.  “I’ve always had the itch to get back here and give back to the place that gave me so much.”

Milligan was inducted along with the 2014 women’s softball team, which split the state title with CCBC-Catonsville while setting a school record for softball wins (34) that still stands.  Catonsville eventually edged Chesapeake, 6-5, in the “if” game of the NJCAA Division II Region XX championship tournament with a national tournament berth on the line.

Chesapeake head coach Durrie Hayes presented the nine players in attendance and assistant coach Jay Chance for induction.  Hayes recalled the squad as a true all-around team – “that could run, hit, pitch, and play defense” – that overcame a spate of injuries on the way to its string of accomplishments.

Hayes noted that Stephanie Weyermiller was named to two all-American teams and seven members of that squad earned all-state or all-region softball honors, or both.

Milligan – all-Bayside Conference at Colonel Richardson before his Chesapeake career and an all-star at Bluefield State College after his time as a Skipjack – has also excelled in coaching.  He had two stints as head baseball coach at Colonel Richardson, serving from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2003 to 2008, with the biggest highlight being the program’s first region and state championships in 2007 and first Bayside Conference title in 2008.

He later led Kent County High to three straight winning seasons in his only three years as the Trojans’ head coach.