Passion announces inaugural roster
When Carole Bartlebaugh answered her phone Tuesday night, she thought she was dreaming when she heard what the caller had to say.
A member of the Pittsburgh Passion coaching staff told Bartlebaugh she made the newly formed franchise of the National Women's Football League.
"This is like a dream come true," said Bartlebaugh, 32, of Sarver. "I have been dreaming about playing football since I was in the third grade. I can't believe this is happening.”
Bartlebaugh is one of 65 women who made the team. The Passion had 132 women go out for the team. She and her teammates went through three tryouts and were chosen based on performance during drills, endurance and knowledge of the game.
“I am definitely happy with the players we have,” Passion head coach and general manager John Stolec said. “We have a lot of great athletes who understand the game and who are excited about playing football.”
The league, formed in August 2000, currently has 21 teams competing in five divisions. The Passion are one of four teams slated to start next year. The Passion join Columbus, Rochester and Junction City, Kan., as teams expected to kick off next year.
Members of the Passion will meet May 20 to get a practice schedule, playbook and contracts. They are not paid. The Passion still don't have a home field or an owner. There have been discussions with Duquesne University to use Rooney Field, but that has not been solidified. Now that the team is set, Stolec said his concentration will be on finding a field and an owner. That way, he can schedule practices and some exhibition games.
“I can't wait to get started,” Bartlebaugh said.
Like most women, there was never a football team for Bartlebaugh to play on, so she had to settle for pick-up games in the alleys and back yards in her hometown of Indiana, Pa. She did get to play football once, when United High School had a day where the girls played football and the boys were cheerleaders.
"When I got the call and was told the good news, I was nervous and happy," said Bartlebaugh, a meat-packing supervisor for U.S. Food Service in Cranberry. "I was so exited that I had made the team. I was ready to cry."
At 37, Beth Amato of Plum Boro, is one of the oldest players on the squad. The mother of three said she is hopeful to be a pioneer in women's football for her daughters.
“Being one of the older players I would hope the younger girls will look up to the older women,” Amato said. “We have more life experience. I know that when I see an older woman who is in shape and active, I hope I can be in good shape when I am her age, too.”
The Passion will have an experienced quarterback in Barb Adkison, 31, of Swissvale. She is an account manager for an information technology consulting firm. She played for the now-defunct Oklahoma City Wildcats of the Women's Professional Football League.
“I went crazy when I heard they wanted to start a team in Pittsburgh,” said Adkison, who is 5-foot-5, 117 pounds. “I practically jumped through the car roof. I think this will fly because Pittsburgh is a football town. The women on this team are tough. We just need to get the support of the city.”
They already have the support of the coaching staff.
“We have a lot of great athletes out on the team, we have basketball players, rugby players, soccer, volleyball and softball players, a lot of them competed on the collegiate levels," aid Stolec, who is also an assistant coach at Cornell High School. "We are looking forward to getting in the pads, and knocking heads, that's what they want.”
