Katie Bayly 

Katie Bayly is one of the most exciting sophomore female athletes in Lake County. 

A four-sport athlete who competes in soccer, weightlifting, softball and volleyball, Katie is no stranger to athletic prowess. And she gets it honest: Katie’s father, James Bayly, was the softball coach for Lake Brantley High School in Altamonte Springs for 10 years. 

Katie grew up around softball diamonds, where she fell in love with the sport she’s played since she was 4. 

Katie plays infield and second base now, but she knows just about every position between the foul lines. She was so good at softball that she played on varsity as an 8th-grader for Mount Dora Christian Academy. She showed she belonged by slashing a .461 average. The next season, as a freshman, she hit at a .455 clip. She scored 37 runs both of those years and combined for over 81 hits and 30 RBIs her first two years playing varsity. 

Currently, Katie is wrapping up her sophomore year of softball and will certainly be one to watch out for over the next couple of years. 

Katie attributes her success to her late aunt, longtime Pinellas County softball coach Kaylyn Bayly, who was a driving force in her life. Kaylyn passed away in 2022, leaving a legacy of teaching student/athletes that being a person of good character and integrity is the most important thing in life. She also encouraged her players to embrace diversity and value their relationships. Kaylyn demonstrated and taught the definition of respect to the fullest. 

Katie lives by those creeds and uses them as motivation every time she plays a sport. 

“My aunt meant everything to me,” Katie says. “When we lost her, it was a difficult time, but I play for her and remember everything she ever taught me. It gives me motivation to go out and play my hardest no matter what.” 

Katie takes a leadership role in every sport she plays. That’s something that her aunt Kaylyn instilled in her at a young age. 

“Playing four sports makes getting schoolwork done imperative,” Katie says. “I make time for schoolwork, be it on the bus, at night or anytime I have free time. It’s not always easy, but academics are incredibly important. I work just as hard at sports as I do in the classroom.” 

Katie enjoys spending time with friends, shopping and hanging out with family when she’s not competing. 

The Bayly family is very close. Katie’s father James teared up when he spoke about his late sister.

“Katie reminds me so much of Kaylyn. She is like a mirror image of her,” James says. “She meant everything to so many people and when we lost her it was a difficult time. But when people meet Katie, they see so much of what Kaylyn represented that lives on within her.”