Father knew best for Angleton’s ace
Before Aaliyah Garcia was the pitcher she is today, she wanted to be a catcher. With the help of her dad, she stuck to the pitching route and is this year’s recipient of the Chronicle’s All-Greater Houston Softball Pitcher of the Year award.
This season, Garcia lifted the Angleton softball team in some key games, ultimately leading the Ladycats to their first state title in 25 years.
No moment was bigger than her 11th-inning, game-winning RBI to push Angleton past Forney in the 5A state semifinal.
“That’s just the player she is,” Angleton coach Cindy Rubio said. “She just doesn’t quit. She keeps going until the end.”
Garcia, a Georgia Southern signee, posted a 1.39 ERA this season. The Angleton ace went 30-2 in the circle and recorded 279 strikeouts. She also hit .447 with 14 doubles, 65 RBI and a .748 slugging percentage.
Q: How did it feel to end your high school softball career on a high note?
A: “For me, it’s just like an accumulation. My senior season was like this accumulation of all the years that I’ve put into softball, all the hours at the field, all the long nights with my dad. It was just a dream. It just felt so rewarding.”
Q: How big of a role has your dad played in your softball career?
A: “My dad is my whole softball career. I always tell this little story. When I was growing up and I was learning to pitch, I used to pitch and catch at the same time. He told me, ‘You know, it’s going to be rough to do both. So you need to pick one.’ So I said, ‘Okay, dad, then I’ll be a catcher. I want to be a catcher.’ He was like, ‘No, I think you’re just going to stick with pitching.’ So he wanted to make me feel like I had a choice, but he knew that I was going to be a pitcher and I’m thankful for it to this day. I don’t know where I would be without pitching.”
Q: Where do you think you would be now if your dad would have let you be a catcher?
A: “Oh my goodness, I have no idea. I’d probably have some really bad knees, I guess. I don’t know, I used to like catching. I really did like it and I think I just liked it because I always thought the catcher was the leader on the field and now that I see it, like, the pitcher is just as much of a leader out there, too … I’m kind of glad I (became) a pitcher, but if I was to be a catcher, I guess, I don’t know, I would probably have a bunch of different stories, then. Everything would probably be backwards.”
Q: What did your dad tell you after that state championship win?
A: “After I kind of hugged everybody in the huddle, I kind of walked off by myself and I was looking for my dad in the stands. And he looked at me and he gave me a big smile and a thumbs up and I could see that he was crying and that’s what really got me. The whole, just seeing him. He is my rock, he is my guy. And then after the game he just said, ‘You know I’m so proud of you.’ He was like, ‘This is everything, this is what you’ve always wanted, this is what we both dreamed of.’ And it is true, because it’s always been our biggest dream for something like this to happen, to be on that big of a stage and have a win like that.”
Q: What was going through your mind before you hit the game-winning RBI in the state semifinal against Forney?
A: “I just thought, ‘Man, I have a chance to win it right here. Why don’t I just, you know, just swing the bat.’ And sure enough it worked out and it was just a relief. I was thinking that, you know, we were in 11 innings, I didn’t know how many more innings we were gonna have to play and that’s a lot more pitches to throw. It was just a big relief, I think more than anything, and then just the rush of excitement after I hit it. All my friends, all my teammates came to see me, it was real great ... I was like, ‘I don’t know how many more innings I have to pitch. I don’t know if I want to keep pitching, you know. So let’s just end it here.’”