Vito Higgins had just watched Spokane Velocity FC lose to Central Valley Fuego FC after a stoppage time goal put the game to penalties, which Fuego FC won.
It was the type of outcome that keeps coaches awake at night and pushes them to have short memories.
Higgins, Spokane’s goalie coach, was understandably irritated as the club dropped points, but his irritation faded when he turned toward the west side of ONE Spokane Stadium to discover his daughter, Kamiya.
His 6-year-old was attending her first game to witness her father on the sidelines, fulfilling a post-playing career goal.
Ryan Harnetiaux, Velocity FC co-owner, assisted in lifting Kamiya over the railing before she ran over to greet her father, wearing a smile that erased any bad thoughts about the outcome.
“It immediately put it into perspective that here’s this human being that I brought into this world and here, these players that I’m helping, they were in those shoes, so it really ties it all together in terms of why I’m doing, what I’m doing and who I’m doing it for,” Higgins stated. “That moment was pretty, pretty monumental.”
Higgins held back tears as he spoke about his daughter from that particular moment last month.
The former Gonzaga Bulldog soccer standout
Following a tryout with Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy, he hung up his goalkeeper gloves and changed his direction.
That brief interaction with his daughter, who was unconcerned about the defeat and simply wanted to embrace her father, demonstrated how innocent sports can be, even when unexpected losses occur.
It was also a time of closure for Higgins, whose personal and family sacrifices over the last four years challenged his determination but were ultimately worthwhile.
“Here we are, reaping the rewards of that risk,” Higgins added.
•••Higgins grew raised in Kailua, Hawaii, which is not well-known for soccer.
However, his uncle was a high school soccer coach and played at the University of San Diego, thus soccer was Higgins’ foundation as he grew up.
“My uncle was massively a big role model in soccer for me,” Higgins stated.
Higgins spent his weekends driving around Oahu with his uncle, spectating and later playing in men’s leagues across the island.
Higgins, as he matured into his body type, was one of the few players who enjoyed playing goalie on the island’s poorly maintained pitches.
“Some kids really didn’t like diving and hitting the ground and I just remember I was ferocious, but I had zero technique,” Higgins recalled. “My style was very blue collar.”
Higgins was also an avid hockey fan, which is unusual for a Hawaii native.
His fortitude, combined with his developing skills, earned him an opportunity to play Division I soccer as goalie.
Higgins became aware of Gonzaga through the school’s penchant to recruit from the islands, which previous GU men’s head coach Einar Thorarinsson did, as well as the fact that a Kailua keeper started for the Zags for ten years in a row.
Josh Fouts and Mike McCarthy, both from Kailua, were also present.
When Fouts attended GU, he gave Higgins’ uncle a T-shirt from a Bulldogs-sponsored marathon. It became Higgins’ favourite shirt.
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