Alisa Fila steps down as English coach

English High softball coach Alisa Fila has stepped down after 23 years of coaching the Bulldogs.Fila said she had been thinking about it for some time and decided the time was right. Fila started coaching the team in 1992, taking over for former coach and former English High teammate Martha Jamieson.?It wasn?t an easy decision because I do love the game,” Fila said. “The kids have been great. I give the kids I coached the past few years a lot of credit. Even though we weren?t doing too well, they were still coming back, giving it their all in practice. Whoever gets the job after me is going to get a young, talented group.”Fila played for the Bulldogs in 1982, 1983 and 1984. She went on to play a year at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, but left after one year. She took a couple of years off before enrolling in Salem State, where she ended up playing softball for three years.Fila was hired to coach after completing her student teaching and she has held the job ever since. Among the highlights, she said, was winning the John Holland Tournament in 1998 and finishing second in the Northeastern Conference that year.Fila said she?ll miss the kids and the coaching.?Every team has given me a great moment, whether we came in second place or last place. That?s kept me going 23 years,” Fila said.Fila, who still plays softball in a slow pitch league in Wakefield, said one of the things she?s looking forward to doing in her post-coaching days is watching her nieces and nephew play sports.?I never get to see them play because I?m coaching,” she said, adding she?s also looking forward to spending more time at her place in New Hampshire.?I may even take an April vacation,” she joked. “I haven?t been able to do that in 23 years.”English athletic director Gary Molea said it?s tough to give up coaching after so many years. He did it with football, he said, and it was difficult.?It?s a tough decision,” he said. “At some point in your life you want to move on and do something different.”Molea actually served as Fila?s assistant the first 10 years she was coaching.?Alisa always had a lot of respect for the other teams and the umpires. She was a great role model for the kids,” he said. “I wish her nothing but the best.”Molea said he won?t start looking to fill the position until after school resumes in September. He said the person who gets the team will benefit from Fila?s decision to play five freshmen this year. Although they took their lumps, it gave them experience that should be helpful going forward.Fila, who teaches physical education at Thurgood Marshall Middle School and serves as the school?s athletic director, thanked some of her previous assistants over the years, including Linda Spinazola, Dick Dooley, Donna Mills and this year?s assistant, Sarah Kuzmin.