Tony Ayres spent 20 years as a Military Police officer in the United States Air Force, serving two tours in combats areas and earning the Meritorious Service Medal for his efforts.
“Coach Ayres has an impressive background in and out of the world of sports,” Payne said. “We are so fortunate to have someone that is such a great leader in so many ways. He has a track record of leading club softball teams to great heights and, after spending time as the assistant at Carolina Forest, the time was just right for him to take the leap into head coaching at the high school level.”
A high school football standout at St. Augustine Prep in Richland, NJ, Ayres followed his four daughters into his passion for the game of softball. He got his start working with the Howard County Thunder, a travel softball program in Indiana. He worked his way up from serving as the program’s equipment and technology manager, to executive member of the board of directors to head coach.
During his time with the Thunder he helped them win a pair of state championships to go along with a runner-up finish, as well as a pair of top five finishes on the national tournament.
“I absolutely have a passion for helping young student athletes reach their full potential,” Ayres said. “In building the program at Atlantic Collegiate Academy we will instill core values of integrity first, service before self and excellence in all we do.”
In addition to his work with the Thunder, Ayres also served as president of the Greentown (IN) Girls Softball League while also working as the pitching coach and eventually head coach of the 8U and 12U teams. He coached the Eastern Middle School softball team from 2015-18.
Ayres relocated his family to South Carolina in 2021, becoming assistant softball coach at Carolina Forest High School.
Throughout his coaching journey, Ayres has been involved in coaching his daughters. His oldest, Brianna, played from an early age, but became interested in nursing and recently graduated from Indiana University Kokomo and has started her career in health care.
His middle daughters, Deanna and Alayna, are teammates at Methodist University in Fayetteville, NC, where Deanna is a pitchers and Alayna is a middle infielder. His youngest, Gabriella, is 12 and just beginning her journey.
Ayres earned an associate degree in criminal justice from the Community College of the Air Force in 2008 and has also participated in specialized training at the FBI Hostage Negotiation School. He is an active shooter and police training instructor and is also a certified CPR instructor with certifications in first aid and life saving measures as well as concussion protocols.
In addition to raising four daughters, Ayres and his wife Melody have a pair of dogs, Max and Kylo.
