Our Lady of

Mercy High School, Fayette County's first catholic high

school, is preparing for their inaugural school year and

athletic season.

The school

will have a full athletic program and will participate in

Class AA in the GHSA. Other teams in Class AA are Pike

County and Northgate High School. Though they will most

likely not field varsity squads for another two years,

the Bobcats as they will be known, hope to field athletic

programs like Lovett and Marist High School.

"We

have a state of the art facility and are doing this the

right way," said Lee McDermott, baseball and

softball coach and co-athletic director at Our Lady of

Mercy. "It may be a rocky first year, but we're

getting the ball rolling." The other co-athletic

director will be Alan Gordon, who will also serve as the

football coach for the Bobcats.

McDermott,

recently an assistant with the Starr's Mill High School

baseball team, certainly knows his baseball. His coaching

experience includes time with Lake Brantley High School

in Orlando, which won a state championship in 1990 with a

current pro player, Jason Varitek, the catcher for the

Boston Red Sox, and a stint as head coach in Boca Raton,

Fla.

The school,

is a state of the art facility located on 54 acres

practically across the street from Evander Holyfield's

estate. There is a football field, a soccer field, a

baseball diamond, a softball field, practice fields and

weight rooms. The school is still taking enrollment and

will open in August.

"It

will be exciting to build a tradition," said

McDermott. "With an increasing number of Catholics

in the area, it is also great to bring Catholic education

to the southside."