Oklahoma Softball Embracing its 'Beatles Moment'

The Sooners are at the heart of a phenomenon in college softball as fan support for the game grows across the country.

Oklahoma softball continues to sell out stadiums.

Patty Gasso’s team is at the heart of a phenomenon in college softball at the moment, as her undefeated team sits atop a sport that continues to show rapid growth.

Last weekend, over 13,000 total fans packed into Hall of Fame Stadium across three days of action to see the Sooners (26-0) host five games.

Then, Oklahoma helped the No. 8-ranked Kentucky Wildcats sell out John Cropp Stadium for a mid-week battle between future conference foes.

Viewership numbers for the Women’s College World Series and the sport as a whole have steadily risen over the past decade, but Gasso said the attention her team has gotten this year has reached new heights.

“This last World Series to me was just a game changer because it was such a great series,” Gasso said in a Zoom press conference on Thursday. “And literally every game that could be played got played. So you got to watch a lot of softball for a long period of time.

“… We ended up winning and then the summer was just a lot of, can you do this? Can you do that… We had a lot of people reaching out and wanting a piece of this.”

Gasso said the attention died down a bit as the team returned for fall workouts. But when the 2022 season really got rolling, there’s hardly been an empty seat in the house.

“I think our opening weekend we had standing room only out at the tournament that we were kind of helping host in Irvine,” Gasso said. “… And then we go out to Palm Springs and there's 5,000 people surrounding a small, non-equipped stadium. Not a stadium, it's not a stadium. It's a softball field with some, you know, like cement seats.

“… Palm Springs was like a wow. That was the Beatles moment where I'm like, we need security to get out of here. People are screaming, they're throwing stuff for us to sign over security's head. It was a whole 'nother level that I have not felt before. And then now just from this point on, I think we're just going to be walking in a sellouts.”

Even a seasoned veteran like Lynnsie Elam said she has been taken aback by the growing fan support.

Ryan Chapman / SI Sooners

The super senior catcher pointed out just how many Sooner fans were at the contest in Lexington on Tuesday night, which was a boost to the team who had taken a charter plane to arrive in Kentucky. 

Ryan Chapman / SI Sooners

“I would say that Sooner fans have always been out every year,” Elam said, “… but it has multiplied tremendously throughout the years. So I think it's been super cool on my part, specifically, to see that fan base grow.

Ryan Chapman / SI Sooners

“… But we were definitely expecting there to not be a lot of crimson in Kentucky. And I remember we were pulling in on the bus and we saw the line kind of outside the gate and we're like, ‘Okay, okay, there's some crimson out there.’ So it was really cool to see.”

The spotlight has been an adjustment for newcomers on the team.

Oregon transfer Alyssa Brito said she was floored all the way back in the fall about the fan support in Norman. The Sooners sold out their fall exhibition games, something Brito said she was not expecting.

“I was even talking to a lot of the girls in the fall of how crazy it is,” said Brito, “how packed our stadium was in just a fall game. I know that was a really big change for me, because last year, we just didn't have as many people obviously with COVID showing up in the fall.

“But just to see it gets sold out, even so early in the season was really cool to see. And then just to like feel the atmosphere of how loud the crowd is and how supportive they are of you, it's just really fun to play in front of. And I feel like we just as a team really bounce off of their energy.”

The increased spotlight on Oklahoma has done more than just help push the Sooners to a perfect start to the year. Oklahoma’s rockstar status in college softball has helped raise the bar for other programs across the country as far as the backing needed from athletic departments to compete, but it’s also given new experiences to student athletes who otherwise may not have played in such atmospheres.

After the Hall of Fame Classic last Sunday, Iowa coach Renee Gillispie said as much to Gasso.

“One of the things that warms my heart,” said Gasso after the game against Iowa on Sunday, “is Iowa’s coach commenting, ’This is the biggest moment and the biggest atmosphere our team will ever play in. And thank you, I’m so appreciative.’

“So the Sooners (fans) came out and changed some programs because they were standing in front of big crowds and learning how to play in front of big crowds. So really proud of our fans and so appreciative of what they did.”

For Oklahoma, it now return to Marita Hynes Field for just the second time this season.

Friday night, the Sooners will host the Baylor Bears (17-10) in Game 1 of a three-game set to kick off Big 12 Conference play.

First pitch between OU and the Bears is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on Bally Sports Oklahoma.

After a couple of months on the road, the Sooners are fired up to be returning home to settle in for conference action.

“I just love coming (to Marita Hynes Field) and playing in Norman,” Brito said. “The atmosphere is just crazy.

“The fans are always loud and you can definitely feel how much they're into it. And I just really love all the passion and energy that comes from them.”

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