Carver A&T softball coach Kevin Klimko reflects on team's fourth consecutive regional title

How a small arts and technology school rose up to win four consecutive regional softball titles in Maryland

Carver AT&T softball / Geno Gemdimnico

Carver A&T High School in Towson, Maryland may not be very well known for its athletics, more so its strong arts and technology programs. However, most recently, the school’s varsity softball team, led by head coach Kevin Klimko, just won its fourth consecutive regional championship.

“I’m very proud,” said Klimko. “Very proud moment for a school that it’s never happened at before.”

The school, whose full name is George W. Carver Center for Arts & Technology, beat Western Tech, 14-10, in the MPSSAA 1A softball playoffs for its fourth straight regional title since 2022. It’s a remarkable accomplishment especially considering the team went 10-12 in the regular season.

“I hope it brings validity to the athletic program as a whole,” said Klimko. “Athletics are growing there, getting better and having better results. It’s an arts and technology school, so athletics aren’t the main component of that school. But I’d like to think that we are setting a trend to make it a bigger part of the school, and other coaches have followed along with us in that respect.”

Back in 2022, the Wildcats' softball team was the runner-up for the Baltimore County Championship, and then won the County Championship a year later in 2023, becoming the school's only athletic program to do so.

One thing to know about Carver A&T is that it’s a magnet school, which means it gets kids from all over Baltimore County who have to test to get in. “You cannot recruit for sports,” said Klimko. “They cannot be brought in for sports. They have to pass the academic portion to get in, and then you get your pick of the kids from there.”

The Wildcats’ softball team held its awards banquet on Monday night, with the Most Improved Player award being given to junior Alexis Mihm, who did not play organized softball until last summer. She was with varsity last year but did not get a lot of playing time, but ended up becoming the team’s starting right fielder through the playoffs.

“The Unsung Hero award went to first baseman Maya Einolf, who had only one fielding error all season and saved numerous errors on throws to first base. She was also forced to play catcher some because of an injury and never complained, and was also very productive at the plate this year.”

“We have a lot of kids that didn’t play softball in rec,” said Klimko. “They just play in high school. We have some kids who play travel-type softball, and some that play club-type softball. These kids started in the program at JV, came up to varsity that year in the playoffs.”

However, Carver A&T’s softball team did feature two seniors who were starters the last four years: Haleigh Frye and Lily Dennis. The two of them were part of the run for four consecutive regional championships. “When they came to me, they were both club players,” said Klimko, “and neither played club ball anymore. But they both made all-county as freshmen, and they never made all-county again while they were playing.”

Frye, the team’s leadoff hitter, batted .281 and had an on-base percentage of .425, as well as 13 RBIs and 23 runs scored, which is 10 more runs than anyone else on the team scored in 2025.

“Haleigh came in, hit at the top of the lineup,” said Klimko. “Just a good all-around player from day one. She hit first for us this year, she hit second for us in the past. Good outfielder, good center fielder. She played left field every year until this year.”

As for Dennis, she posted strong batting stats, including a .431 batting average, seven doubles, a triple, and 11 RBIs. Defensively, she has pitched and bounced around the infield over the years. Dennis turned out to be the team’s MVP of this season.

“Lily was a kid who really stepped up her hitting this season and she was an excellent defensive player in the infield,” said Klimko. “Played third base her first two years, and last year played second base. She was always our number-two pitcher, our backup pitcher. This year she was forced into a number-one role. Stats weren’t great as far as pitching goes, but her defense and her hitting really came around this year. She had a really good year, and was the MVP of our team.”

This year’s team featured other notable players such as junior Mia McGarvey, a shortstop who hit .389 with a team-tying 17 RBIs, one home run, three doubles and two triples. She was also the only Wildcat to go all-county this season. Sophomore third baseman Emelyse Carney hit .362 with five doubles, one triple, one home run, and 17 RBIs.

Two other juniors who stepped up for Carver A&T were Allison Gray, the starting left fielder who played well defensively, and Jocelyn Barker, who was having a phenomenal season until she suffered a high ankle sprain that ended her year.

A couple notable players from Klimko's Carver tenure include Mallory Cooper, a pitcher who played a key part in the 2023 county championship, and Emily Hamp, a catcher who now plays at Stevenson University.

Klimko began his softball coaching career in 2005 for the Parksville Thunder travel team, where he won a couple state titles during his 10-year tenure. “At all levels we started at the C level when we were in 10U,” said Klimko. “We worked our way all the way up to 18U, played A and won the states at all our levels. In our 14U season, we won the Eastern Regional B national championship.”

Klimko was also an assistant coach at the College of Notre Dame in Baltimore City from 2008 to 2010. He then coached at Parkville High School from 2015 to 2017, Hereford High School in 2018, and finally Carver A&T, where he has been the head coach since 2019.

Klimko addressed that at the start of his coaching tenure at Carver A&T, the softball team had an all-around losing mentality, along with little equipment and very tattered uniforms. “We had to change all of that,” said Klimko. “We fundraised for equipment and uniforms spearheaded by assistant coach Dave Wander. As coaches, we instilled a program built around heart and family.”

Soon after that, the coaches worked on ways to bring the team closer than ever. “We included JV in how we practiced, and worked with everyone on fundamentals,” said Klimko. “We did pizza parties and team activities to build a team atmosphere built on loving and trusting one another. Then I worked hard on stressing winning, hard work, and playing with heart. These have been the pillars of our program since day one.”

When Klimko became Carver A&T’s varsity softball head coach in 2019, his two assistant coaches Dave Wander and Wayne Smith were right by his side until they retired after the 2024 season. However, Madeline Golt, who was part of the softball team in 2022, is now the assistant coach.

“This program would not be where it is without their help also,” said Klimko. “Dave was tireless in his work raising funds and things of that nature to buy uniforms. Wayne was our pitching coach who put a lot of time in with our pitchers and catchers.”