Meet the Varsity girls soccer Coach, Austin Beatty. Coach Beatty has been playing soccer for over twenty-four years and has been coaching for six. For most of his life, soccer has been his escape. Throughout his life, he says that soccer has taught him the importance of persistence and determination. No matter what life threw how way, he always had soccer. One of the things he loves about the sport, is that once he steps on the field he can leave everything behind. Once the game starts, all these problems he and his players have don’t matter. Coach Beaty says, “For all of my life soccer has been a complete escape, no matter what I had in my life I had soccer.”

Outside of soccer, he is a small business owner. Austin’s Antique Shop is one of his biggest passions and proudest accomplishments. At the shop, he has a cat named Katz, after the show Courage the Cowardly Dog. This cat was found inside a cop car, missing three toes on one of its feet, Coach Beatty took him in as a rescue. Now, Katz has become a permanent member of his family. He also has a dog named Snap, like Snap, Crackle, and Pop.

In his free time, Coach Beatty runs and watches soccer. He hasn’t been able to play soccer since he broke his Tib-Fib in 2019. After he broke his leg, he went through extensive rehab and physical therapy to regain the strength in his leg. This experience opened his eyes to how much the sport means to him. Now, he is grateful he gets to share his love for this sport with so many amazing people. Before every game, Coach Beatty has made it a tradition to give the team a motivating speech, where he reminds them that no matter what they are doing it together.

Coach Beatty became the Wildcats girls soccer coach last year, which has been a complete change for him. He used to coach boys' soccer, but now the girl's soccer team holds a special place in his heart. This season, he has begun to implement more positive reinforcement. This is the one thing he strongly believes in. He said that the difference between girls' and boys soccer teams is that with the girls, he has developed more of a connection with his players. With boys soccer teams, are more of a machine, while girls' sports can connect on a deeper level through the love of the sport. This team has become more than a team, they are a family. He is constantly pushing his team to their limits and encouraging team bonding.

This season has started strong for our Lady Wildcats and Coach believes that this season has a promising finish. He believes that this team can make it to the finals in area play for the first time in years. The season started off rough, but the team has found a way to connect on the field, unlike any other team he has ever coached. They have redefined the game of soccer to fit each and everyone's different skill levels. He is so excited for the rest of the season and cannot wait to see what these girls bring to the table. Cami Abel, one of the girl's varsity soccer players says, “Coach Beatty is very committed to everything he does. He puts so much effort into us as players, to make sure we do not lose our love for this sport.”

Go Wildcats!