New coach brings a family lacrosse legacy to Bishop England

Billy Bitter is one of six children born to Ward and Nancy Bitter. His father, Ward, was a standout lacrosse player at Boston College, where he earned All-America honors and is now enshrined in the school's athletic hall of fame. 

Bitter, Bishop England’s new girls’ lacrosse coach, will tell you the sport is a family affair. He has four nieces who could be on the Bishop England roster in 2027: Whitney Jellison, Patsy Jellison, Virginia Jellison, and Mimi Bitter. 

And that’s not the only family connection: His sister, Kristen Bitter Jellison, is the head junior varsity coach this season. 

But first, there’s the 2026 season to contend with, as Bitter has the unenviable task of replacing legendary coach Jeff Weiner, who started and built the BE program that went 226-36 over 12 years. 

Weiner led BE to seven state championships, and the team even had a 98-game win streak that would have reached 117 games if the South Carolina High School League hadn’t ruled the Bishops used an ineligible player in 2023. 

The proud program has been the standard in the Lowcountry, region, and state over the years. 

“The girls know the history of the program,” said Bitter, a 37-year-old native of Manhasset, New York, a lacrosse hotbed on Long Island. “They know what it means to represent Bishop England. They take pride in the program.” 

He has been coaching for more than four years at the collegiate and high school levels and began his coaching career as an assistant at Boston College in 2021, the year the Eagles women’s team won the NCAA title. He served as head coach of Cohasset High School in Massachusetts in 2022 and served as Weiner's assistant. 

Bitter also knows the program’s history. The three-time All-America and ACC Player of the Year selection at the University of North Carolina served as an assistant under Weiner. 

“We’re not changing much,” Bitter said. “But we will do things a little differently.” 

Bitter was with the team during the spring open season and held voluntary workouts in June and July that were well attended. The team practiced every day in October and again in January until workouts were halted before tryouts. 

While the roster isn’t set in stone, Bitter said the team already has captains selected. The tri-captains are Kate Moldenhauer, Natalie Noone, and Taylor Ayers. 

Moldenhauer signed with Sewanee: The University of the South, while Noone and Ayers were the offensive leaders on a team that went 16-3 and reached the state championship, dropping a 12-8 decision to Oceanside Collegiate Academy in the state title game. Noone averaged 2.4 goals a game while Ayers averaged 1.7 goals. 

Two of Bitter’s nieces will be part of the BE program this year: Whitney Jellison, who is a junior, and Patsy Jellison, who is a freshman. Virginia Jellison and Mimi Bitter are both in the eighth grade.