Like father, like daughter: UA's Jasmine Perezchica has an inherent knack for the game

Growing up as a coach’s daughter, Arizona junior outfielder Jasmine Perezchica knew the ins and outs of the game from a young age.

When Wildcats coach Caitlin Lowe saw her play back in 14U, she was shocked to see the deep understanding of softball that Perezchica possessed.

“I was in awe,” said Lowe, whose team opens the season Thursday in the Candrea Classic at Hillenbrand Stadium. “You can teach kids for four years, and sometimes they don’t pick that up.

“She just had a knack of watching the game, feeling the game out defensively, which is a huge thing in softball because most people want to hit. She takes pride in her defense.”

Perezchica’s father, Tony Perezchica, is the third base coach for the Diamondbacks. He has not stopped coaching and tweaking his daughter’s swing to this day.

“He was my coach since I was five. He has always been my coach,” Jasmine Perezchica said. “It’s funny because he will send me little videos throughout the week and kind of tweak my swing here and there, just kind of support me throughout the way. I know he is really busy, but ... we are still really close.”

Tony Perezchica played in the major leagues from 1988-92. He has coached professionally since 1997.

The swing adjustments paid off last season. Perezchica had a breakout sophomore year, leading Arizona in batting average with a mark of .371. Most of the damage came from the leadoff position. She started 27 games as the leadoff batter and batted .391 with an on-base-percentage of .436.

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“I think she has gotten way more mature at the plate,” Lowe said. “Her confidence has grown. She knows what she wants to do with the ball.”

A slap hitter, Perezchica is wary of being called out for being out of the batter’s box. She has told umpires to let her know if she’s doing that during scrimmages — an example of her coach-like attention to detail.

“Not a lot of people are going to do that,” Lowe said. “They do not want to draw attention to it. She was like, ‘This is not going to happen this year.’ Big props to her. And she is actually swinging away a little bit too, so we will see how that fits into our lineup.”

This season, Arizona has multiple options for the leadoff spot.

“Her and Blaise Biringer get on base a lot,” Lowe said. “Their on-base-percentage is so high, they’re scrappy and they can do a lot of different things.”

Perezchica’s defensive position is more firmly established. After primarily playing left field last season, Perezchica is moving to center this year.

“That is her natural position,” Lowe said, “so it did not surprise me.”