An On-Field Brawl at a High School Softball Game Went Viral: Why Was a Coach Charged?

A high school softball coach and her mother were arrested in Texas after a fight during a game that was captured on video.

The fight occurred at a game between Mathis High School and Taft High School in San Patricio County on April 15, according to reports from KRIS, KIII and Sports Illustrated.

In the video, which has circulated widely on social media, the altercation began between a Taft baserunner and the Mathis catcher, who began pushing each other following a close play at home plate.

A person wearing white, who the outlets identified as coach Briana Cruz, 25, is then seen running toward the plate and appearing to wrestle the Taft player to the ground.

Several people then rush in and pull Cruz off the player as others hold back the Taft baserunner while Cruz is being pulled away from the spot.

Following the incident, Cruz turned herself into police and was charged with assault causing bodily injury, according to the outlets, citing an affidavit filed by the Taft Independent School District police.

KIII and KRIS both reported that Cruz’s mother is also being accused of assault for an altercation that broke out in the stands after the fight on the field.

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The affidavit reported by KIII accuses Cruz of “recklessly” taking the Taft player to the ground, though Mathis school superintendent Todd White pushed back on that framing in an interview with the outlet.

“We were able to finish up due process,” White said, according to KIII. “She had a chance to walk us through some of the videos, you know, and there’s some, some, some definite components. It’s obvious that, you know, that she tripped going in and then you can see her bump into another one. You can see her reach out her hand to try and catch balance.”  

The outlet reported that while Cruz will not appear with the team for the remainder of the season, she is still teaching at the school and that the school might hire a lawyer for her to dispute the assault charge.