Published: May 10, 2008 10:49 pm            

SLIDING INTO HOME: Father and daughter fixtures for Jeff softball

BY MIKE HUTSELL

mike.hutsell@newsandtribune.com

David Higgs can’t say he’s too excited.

The clock keeps ticking away on the season for the Jeffersonville softball team. Every inning, every pitch, every out means the Red Devils are one step closer to a day the assistant coach probably never figured possible.

For a coach who estimates he’s been on the bench for all but about 20 of Erin Harper’s games in her softball career — seeing her high school career reach its final days is a bittersweet moment.

“It’s been thousands of games honestly,” said Higgs, looking off into the distance from the Jeffersonville dugout. “I can hardly believe there’s only a few of them left.”

When Higgs watches Harper — whom he has called his daughter since the day he married Harper’s mother Denise — catch on Senior Day next Thursday, he knows it signals almost the end of an era.

“It’s going to be a tough one,” said Higgs about next Thursday. “I’ll be happy for her, but it’ll be a little bit tough on me.”

One could hardly blame Higgs for getting a little teary-eyed. When Jeff loses its final game of the season, it will end more than a decade-long pairing between player and coach — not to mention father and daughter.

Higgs first signed on to play skipper on Harper’s Little League teams back in 1997. He coached her first All-Star team when she hit the age of 9 and has played that role every summer since.

“Probably about 1,000,” said Harper when asked to estimate the total amount of games she’s played with Higgs — who she affectionately calls ‘Dav’ as a combination of Dave and dad. “Maybe even more. It’s pretty much been since I started softball he’s been there that’s just how it has always been.”

For the past eight seasons, Higgs has served as an assistant coach to Becky Shafer with the Jeffersonville High School team. He was quick to accept the spot when Shafer was promoted to Red Devil boss.

“I was looking for somebody and I’ve known David for years,” said Shafer. “He was an easy choice. He knows the game well and he relates so well with the players here.”

He didn’t know for sure if that meant he’d still be there when Harper became a Red Devil four seasons ago — but it has been sort of an extra incentive to the twosome.

“It was no-brainer to me when Becky asked me to coach,” said Higgs. “I knew the chance could still be here and that I would coach Erin in high school if we were still here. I still made sure she was OK with it though. If she wasn’t comfortable having me coach here, I would have stepped aside.”

Harper became Jeff’s full-time catcher midway through her freshman season. The position wasn’t her first choice when she took up the game, but it is perhaps one of the first examples of Higgs’ coaching impact on Harper the player.

“He told me before a game one day that I was catching,” Harper said. “Up til then, I was a shortstop. I didn’t really have much of an idea what to do and the equipment was a little too big for me. But ever since that day, I’ve been a catcher.”

To listen to Shafer say it, Harper an average run-of-the-mill catcher behind the plate either.

“She’s one of the best behind the plate in our conference. There’s no doubt in my mind,” Shafer said. “We don’t even have to call pitches. She calls her own game, and she’s got an arm that can get rid of a lot of baserunners.”

Like any family, there’s going to be a few episodes of infighting. There’s been times when Higgs himself has had a hard time separating the role of coach from the role of parent.

“Becky’s had to get after me, telling me ‘you’re being dad right now coach,’” said Higgs with a laugh. “Sometimes it’s a little tough to separate.”

“We’re not supposed to talk about (softball) at home,” said Harper. “But we do, and we don’t always agree on things. But having him be my coach for this long has meant a lot so much to me. It’s been rewarding and I appreciate everything he’s ever done for me.”

Next fall, Harper will head to Transylvania and continue her career on the diamond as a member of the NCAA Division III Pioneers.

Higgs though has avoided the temptation and has yet to submit a résumé to serve as an assistant. He says he wants to stay at Jeff High as long as Shafer will keep him around and he’ll be more than happy watching Harper from the stands for a few years.

“I’m looking forward to watching her from a different perspective I guess,” he said. “She’s probably ready for the change more than me. I’m proud of her for being able to play at the next level. I’ll be watching from the stands with a smile.”

        

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