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The Redbirds Girls Softball Club program was established in 1993 to provide a select softball program for girls ages 11-18 living in the Northern Virginia area. We started with a single 12 and under (12u) team, the brainchild of two parents, Jack Pollard and Fred Weinberg.....two individuals just looking for a place for their daughters to play in addition to the Reston house league. Since then, the program has moved into Albemarle County with Marc and Anne Powell providing the leadership.

In '93, the call for tryouts went out....the Times and Connection papers as well as word of mouth. A timely visit to the local Hechinger got the interest of Joe Ammons. Dallas Simons and Howard Levin became major involved contributors.

Redbirds, the Originals, 1993

Katie Weinberg and Leslie Pollard, 1993

The first tryout in November at the rock yard at South Lakes High School attracted 10 girls. Not to be discouraged, a second tryout was held in March, this time attracting over 40 girls. Thus the Redbirds was born. To meet the demand, two 12u teams were formed that year. Instant success followed, with the 12u Birds becoming a major player in Fairfax County with wins over the best teams in the area. In year 2, we fielded a 12u and 14u team. Today, the program, has expanded to include teams in Reston with South Lakes as our base facility and in Albemarle County/Charlottesville with Western Albemarle as our base. We typically field 5-7 teams for each season and are one of the most successful and competitive programs on the east coast.

Our results have been nothing less than outstanding. We have had a top 5 finishes at ASA Gold National and Pony National Championships, high finishes at the highly competitive Boulder Independence Classics, top 5 finishes in the AFA National Championships, plus over 50 individual tournament championships. Each year brings new challenges and goals.

2007 16u
Albemarle Redbirds

In addition to a winning tradition and a reputation for providing an excellent playing environment for our girls, we have had terrific results with our girls moving on to the next level after they graduate our program. Each year our appropriate teams schedule several college exposure tournaments (Boulder, Pennsbury, Raleigh and others), and it is becoming a habit for our teams to qualify for the national championship tournaments that attract the top college coaches. Since 1999, the Redbirds 18u team has sent over 50% of their players on to the next level at schools that include Harvard, UVA, Colgate, Elon, Virginia Tech, Delaware, Radford, ECU, JMU, Mt. St. Mary's, George Mason, Radford and others.

The spirit of the Redbirds is typified by our current 16u Reston Redbirds coaching staff. Pam Brock, Eileen Williams came up thru the player ranks with the Redbirds, played in college and returned to coach and give back. Additionally we have added coaches with extensive college experience, like Sarah Idriss.

Redbirds Coaches and Players

We have also been particularly proud of our contributions to the facilities at South Lakes High and Western Albemarle High Schools. When our program started, South Lakes was a one-field complex, complete with rocks, no fence and no storage. Today, thanks to the Redbirds sweat and financial contributions, we have a three field complex (two lit), full fencing, excellent fields, pitching and batting cages and a storage and snack bar facility that are fully utilized by South Lakes High School, the Reston house leagues, Fairfax County Softball League and the Redbirds. In 2000, the Redbirds began holding the Redbirds Classic, a 14 and 16u AFA Qualifier tournament, at our South Lakes facility. In 2002, 2003 and 2004, we hosted DCASA Metros, the Pony Firecracker (23u) tourney and held the first ASA 23u Redbirds Classic. In 2005 we hosted a 14u Pony Qualifier, the Redbirds 23u Classic, plus DCASA Metros and ASA Qualifiers. With the help of the Redbirds, there have been multiple facilities upgrades at the Western Albemarle Varsity field accompanied by an overhaul at the JV field to give us two high quality fields.

The Redbirds have been very fortunate to have a list of dedicated coaches and administrators, excellent teachers and hard working parents, all of who contribute to maintain the environment for our girls that we are proud of.

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