“I think that I always knew I wanted to coach,” said Vanessa Longoria, Dublin High’s School’s new head softball coach, elementary P.E. teacher and assistant in volleyball and jr. high basketball.
“Besides family members, the next greatest people [in my life] were my coaches,” she continued. “I was able to build great relationships with some of my coaches, so I wanted to be able to pass that on and pay it forward.”
Longoria added that a professor who coached softball while she was attending Tarleton State University helped her discover what motivated her and inspired her to impact and influence younger generations. “She pushed me to go after my dream and do something that I would love,” Longoria said. “Here I am.”
Before earning her Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology (Exercise Sport Study) from Tarleton, Longoria was raised in Gorman where she graduated in 2016.
Although this is her first year to teach, she spent the last two years as a special education aide at Gorman ISD so she could get experience teaching.
“Last year I was actually supposed to be the Head softball coach at Gorman ISD but we unfortunately did not have enough girls to make a team,” Longoria said.
Longoria praised team sports for being able to teach players how to communicate and work together, but her favorite is, fittingly, softball.
“It was the sport that taught me how to be competitive and how to really push myself beyond my limits,” she said. “It gave me some of my biggest battles, and with those battles, it taught me I can do anything I push myself to do.”
Longoria is excited to hit the diamond in the spring. “This season I am really looking forward to coaching the group of girls we have,” she said. “They are some amazing girls and I just know that this season is going to be a great one.”
“I have already fallen in love with Dublin,” she added. “Everyone at Dublin and Dublin ISD has been so welcoming and nice.”
Longoria said one of her favorite quotes comes from Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps: “You dream. You Plan. You reach. There will be obstacles. There will be doubters. There will be mistakes. But with hard work, with belief, with confidence and trust in yourself and those around you, there are no limits.”
Vanessa is married to Eliazar Villegas and the couple have two children, Lukas Villegas and Delaney Villegas.