Aug. 21 was a day of celebration for Jacqueline Higa and her softball team—they won the 2017 Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department’s Summer League Championship.
What made this particular softball league so much fun for Higa wasn’t the winning but rather the light-heartedness. Teams that play in the Recreation and Parks League are encouraged to pick silly names. Take the name of Higa’s team for instance, SOP.
“It stands for Sons of Pitches,” Higa explained. “That’s not even the silliest name of a team I’ve ever played on. I played for the Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies a couple years ago.”
Higa, 25, not only played for SOP, she managed the team as well. Out of the seven years she’s played with the Recreation and Parks League, Higa has acted as team manager for six.
“I started managing after my first year. We couldn’t find a manager, so I stepped up and learned how to be one,” she said. “I’ve both played and managed every season since then. This fall will be the first I season I manage without playing.”
Playing the final game of the championship was bittersweet for Higa, as it will probably be her last until the end of fall. The following week, she had surgery on her foot for a bunion. Although she won’t be able to perform any physical activity for three months, she will still be managing a team during the fall season, which starts Sept. 14.
Higa is currently a graduate student at Cal Poly SLO, where she received her bachelor’s degree in 2016. Now she’s back for her master’s in agriculture education. She will also receive her teaching credential as part of the program.
If managing a softball team while going to grad school sounds tough—try managing two softball teams at the same time. Higa played and managed SOP Monday nights, and Thursday nights were reserved for her second team with an equally silly name—Ice Cold Pitchers.
Luckily for Higa, balancing her schedule isn’t as difficult as it might seem, she said.
“What’s great about softball is it’s at night and all of my classes are during the day,” she said. “Occasionally I’ll take a night class here and there, but usually never on the same days as practice.”
For Higa, the biggest similarity between managing and playing softball is looking out for the rest of the team rather than yourself—even if it means not getting to play as much as you’d actually want to.
“If there’s a lot of us, I’ll sit out and let whoever wants to play jump in,” she said. “If anyone gets tired or needs a break, I’m there to switch with. It’s all about making sure everyone gets the chance to play.”
This article appears in Aug 31 – Sep 7, 2017.