Get to Know Daron Schulthies

The game – whether it be baseball or softball – has brought Daron Schulthies full circle in a lifelong journey from player to coach

It’s been 15 years since Daron Schulthies last played baseball at Heritage High School, and those 15 years have marked a journey that led him through a successful college baseball career, transitioning to a baseball coach, then softball coach and now to leading the HitStreak softball program while coaching at the very high school where he once played. Throughout this path, his two daughters are not just witnesses but active participants, learning the same diamond lessons that shaped his own life.

“I want to create a program to where when you come in and you walk through those doors, I know your name. I know your parents' name. I know issues that are going on. We're helping you fix those issues. I want that tight-knit feel and HitStreak has allowed me to create that and that's why I think it's something special.”

These days, Daron is happily married to his wife Danielle and together they have two beautiful daughters – Payton and Kynlee – who now help guide his path as a coach. After Daron graduated from Heritage, he went on to play at Hutchinson Community College where he helped lead the team to the JUCO World Series in 2010. From there, he played at Metro State University where he was teammates with HitStreak’s Ty Jacobs. Following his playing career, Daron stayed connected to the game he loves through coaching at Heritage and Rock Canyon High Schools. Just as he was raising his two daughters, an opportunity to coach softball came about and opened the door to his current role as Head Softball Coach at Heritage and Softball Director at HitStreak. We sat down with Daron and he shared highlights from his coaching career, his philosophy and all that he hopes to accomplish for girls softball in Colorado.  

The game's greatest teachings have never been just about baseball or softball, but about family – a truth that has remained constant throughout his life.

Get to know Daron more through this interview where he talks about his playing experiences, the differences between coaching high school and competitive club sports and what he wants out of HitStreak softball teams and players.

On his surprise entry into the softball world:

“We did a lot of our winter training at HitStreak when I was in high school, did a lot of clinics that Scott held. Everything’s full circle and it's 10 years, 15 years down the road, I never thought I'd be working for HitStreak. I was coaching varsity baseball for seven years, ran some high school summer programs and fell into the Heritage (softball) job. I didn't think I'd ever coach softball but – having two daughters, my wife played in college, being a big fan of NCAA softball – I just love the game and when I got the opportunity to coach Heritage one fall I absolutely fell in love with it. I decided to step away from baseball and put my focus into softball. Having two daughters come up through the system starting off playing rec, T -ball, then going into the competitive side of it…I really thought, ‘What can I do to not only coach the community, but make softball better in Colorado?’”

On the growth of HitStreak softball:

“Last year with teams, we ended up with six HitStreak teams. And then this year, we're sitting right at 9-10 HitSteak teams and just going to try and grow it as much as we can and give girls the opportunity to play at the highest level, get the best training, and become, better softball players…just better people in general.”

On the differences and similarities between baseball and softball:

"I'm sure there were a lot of people when I came over thinking, 'he's a baseball guy.' But at the end of the day, I'm going to coach a softball swing the same as I would a baseball swing. There are different approaches you can take just based on how that pitch is coming into the zone – a softball coming from down low versus a baseball coming from up high. But as far as the swing itself and making contact, it's very similar.

If you watch college softball on TV, just the way the game has grown in the last couple years and the transition you're seeing where girls are looking to now drive the ball out of the stadiums, and the fielders are having the same footwork as a baseball player because they want to get around that softball and make the play, the game has really changed from more of your old-school softball of 'get the ball down, beat it out.' Now, girls are looking to drive balls into the gap. Fielders are looking to create movement just to be quicker because the game is so quick.

There are differences, but at the end of the day, it's the same game. As a coach, you can go to battle with a group of 12 girls and a group of 12 boys pretty much the same way – and that's awesome."

On the differences between high school and competitive club softball:

“The one thing and the one reason I still coach for the high school is I love the school spirit. I love playing with a group of girls that you are taking algebra and chemistry with and you know, you might not be friends but, at the end of the day, you're in the same lineup together. You go to class together. You’re with each other 24 /7 where competitive you have girls coming from all over the place to create a team. What's fun about coaching at Heritage is they hand you a deck of cards every year and they say, ‘All right coach, play your hand.’”

On his goals and impact at HitStreak:

“I have some girls coming back to the program that want to help the program because they want to share their love now. So those are the relationships I want. And again, it's that family feel. It's having a place to call home, and it’s those values I'm putting into our HitStreak teams. I want to create a program to where when you come in and you walk through those doors, I know your name. I know your parents' name. I know issues that are going on. We're helping you fix those issues. I want that tight-knit feel and HitStreak has allowed me to create that and that's why I think it's something special.”