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Mowatt Lowe

Softball Arizona Athletics

Wildcats for Life: Caitlin Lowe and Taryne Mowatt-McKinney

When you think of Arizona Softball, there are many things that come to mind. You think of a rich history and tradition rivaled by very few programs in any sport at any level. You think of a culture that has transcended from generation to generation that has seen the program represented in a first-class manner. But perhaps more than anything else, you should think of family.
 
It's the reason that every year dozens of Wildcat softball alumnae return to Hillenbrand for an annual alumni events, whether it's an alumni game vs. the current team, a Homecoming Weekend event or a 10-, 20- or even 30- year anniversary of a conference or national championship. It's the reason there is an entire section of the renovated Hillenbrand Stadium dedicated to the alumnae, so they will always have a place to watch the Wildcats. It's the reason that both Caitlin Lowe and Taryne Mowatt-McKinney, two of the best players in Arizona history, didn't hesitate to return to their alma mater when head coach Mike Candrea asked if they were interested in coming home.
 
"Coach and I were catching up at Autumn Champion's wedding, and he was asking what I was doing in the offseason (of National Pro Fastpitch), and asked if I would be interested in the director of operations job," said Lowe. "I immediately I said yes. Since I was a player I've always wanted to whatever I could to help Coach and to help the program."
 
Lowe, one of two four-time first-team All-Americans in program history while patrolling center field from 2004-07, has been on staff since the fall of 2012, when she accepted the role as the program's director of operations, a position she admittedly "didn't know much about" but was thrilled to join Coach Candrea's staff and return to the program that she had given so much to for four years. Lowe quickly transitioned into a coaching role prior to the 2014 season and is now the team's associate head coach, a title she has held since 2018.
 
"I couldn't wait to get back to Tucson and to the program," said Lowe. "It was a no-brainer and it's funny how easy the decision came. And now I feel like I'm back home and exactly where I should be."
 
For Mowatt-McKinney, who led the Wildcats to the 2007 national championship with an All-American campaign and then a herculean effort in the Women's College World Series, the circumstances were different, but the feelings were the same.
 
"I got the call right before I was going to go out to field for fall practice (at Ole Miss)," said Mowatt-McKinney, who had helped transform the Ole Miss softball program. "But it was a no-brainer. It was an awesome phone call that changed my life and I love being back here. Tucson is home to me; it's where some of my greatest memories are at. This is my dream job."
 
That special bond between everyone in the Arizona family, a family that stretches six decades, has one man at the center: Mike Candrea, or as he's known to everyone who has played with him, simply "Coach". Listen to any Coach Candrea postgame speech and you'll learn just as much about life as you do about the game of softball. He is constantly preparing his players for the upcoming series as well as the realities of life outside of the white lines. And that familiar bond is what makes the Arizona program so special and keeps alumnae coming back to Tucson every year.
 
"I think it's very easy for anyone who played under Coach Candrea down that path into coaching because of how he helps you with softball, not just with life," said Lowe. "At the end of the day, he's a life coach. Playing for someone like that and coming to a University that has so many resources, we build great women in the workforce. Why wouldn't you want to be a part of that?"
 
 
 
On the field they were nearly unstoppable. Lowe and Mowatt-McKinney teamed up to win back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007. Their names are scattered throughout both the Arizona and NCAA record books as two of the sport's best to ever dawn a uniform. Now, they've traded in those uniforms and their spots in centerfield and the pitcher's circle for a spot in the dugout and have gone from mentee to mentor. Student to teacher. A transition that both have made with incredible success. Arizona's offense and outfield defense have rarely been better in UA history than since Lowe's return to Tucson and Arizona's three-year stretch in the circle since Mowatt-McKinney's return has been the best three-year run since she was in the circle over a decade ago.
 
The two now sit on the opposite side of the player-coach dynamic as they did when they played together from 2005-07, but their determination and focus has remained the same, something that still elevates the two of them over many of their peers. But their new perspective begs the question: if you could go back in time to your playing days, what advice would you give your younger self?
 
"I would tell myself to not waste a year not getting better" said Mowatt-McKinney. "And not that I was complacent where I was, but I knew I wasn't the ace and I was comfortable in that role. And what I tell myself now is to go and try and take that spot, even if you know you're not going to be able to get it. I wish I would have pushed myself even more to be the best I could possibly be as a freshman."   
 
"I wish I knew as a student that it goes by so fast," said Lowe. "Especially as a freshman, the fall feels like it's seven years long, but by your senior year, it feels like it's two weeks long. It just flies by so fast, so take advantage of every moment.
 
"And also, I would tell myself to speak up. I think we get a little scared to use our voices until we're older, but really there's no timeline on our opinions and the passion that you feel. And until people start to feel that from you, you really can't reach your full potential as a team."
 
These are the values that the two of them instill in the current Wildcat teams daily. Their perspective makes them a constant source for players to soak up and learn from.
 
"The values this program instills in you work for every generation," said Lowe. "So it's fun to watch them come in, earn the A, and see what that process looks like. Because every generation puts their own stamp on it, but at then end of the day we all share that same bond. We all have the same goals, but with a different vibe. It's really fun."
 
"I love interacting with the current student athletes," said Mowatt-McKinney. "I really enjoy having an impact on their lives and I enjoy watching them grow up.
 
"But I must say, this is the first year I've felt significantly older than them. This is the first year that I've really had to ask a lot of questions about what was going on and what was cool with the younger generation."
 
However, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
 
"All I know is they still listen to the same music that we listened to in school," said Lowe. "When we're in the batting cages, they always put on 2000's Hip-Hop, which is all the music we listened to."
 
Year after year, the Arizona softball family, and the footprint of one of the strongest cultures of any program in collegiate sport continue to grow. The goals and principles of the program perpetuate through the generations, and though things change – some less than others – one thing will always remain the same: when you come through the Arizona softball program, you have a family for life.
 

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