OU Softball: Senior Haley Lee's 'Dream Come True' at Oklahoma Almost Didn't Happen

Sooners coach Patty Gasso said she's glad she wasn't "lame" for judging Lee's tattoos and motorcycle habits and admires the breath of fresh air she brings to the OU roster.

OKLAHOMA CITY — One stressful game into her first College World Series, Oklahoma senior Haley Lee is in softball heaven.

“Watching it from afar growing up, it’s like a dream come true,” Lee said this week ahead of the Sooners’ latest visit to Hall of Fame Stadium. “You take away the 8-year-old’s dream and make it a reality.”

In OU’s tense 2-0 victory over Stanford on Thursday, Lee was 0-for-3 at the plate with a strikeout. But what’s important is she’s here — and how she got here.

“This one right here,” said OU coach Patty Gasso, “is a treasure. A treasure.”

Lee transferred to OU from Texas A&M, where she set the single-season school record with 25 home runs in 2021. A four-year starter from Kingwood, TX, Lee bashed 47 homers in her Aggie career, delivered 130 RBIs, slugged .704 (including a school-record .955 in ’21) and scored 121 runs.

Haley Lee's grand slam trot vs. Clemson :: SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN -USA TODAY NETWORK

But like many transfers, she almost didn’t make it to Oklahoma — and all because of Gasso, who didn’t know if Lee would be a good fit for the Sooner culture.

Spoiler alert: Lee turned out to be a good fit in Gasso’s culture at OU — a great fit, actually.

“In a weird way, I'm proud of myself,” Gasso said, “because, when we faced her, when we faced Haley at Texas A&M, it was a nightmare. There's certain hitters that when they come up, I'm like, ‘Oh, no. No way.’ And I know (pitching coach Jen) Rocha was feeling the same way. That was Haley.”

Obviously, Gasso’s reservations about adding Lee to the roster went way beyond her contributions at the plate.

“When I saw she was in the portal, I didn't know her, but I was trying to kind of judge her,” Gasso admits. “I hadn't seen a lot of girls with a lot of tattoos and so forth, right? I heard that she drives a motorcycle. I'm like, ‘OK, this could be a major problem. I don't know if this is going to fit.’

Haley Lee and Patty Gasso :: BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN -USA TODAY NETWORK

“Well,” said Lee, “for starters, you ride a motorcycle. You don't really drive it. But I'm not going to go too deep into that.”

Rather than judge Lee for arm tattoos and Harley habits, Gasso decided to get her team captain involved.

“It was actually Grace Lyons and I,” Gasso said. “I'm like, ‘I’m going to call her. I'm not going to do this. I've got to call her.”

Eventually, Lyons and Gasso touched base with Lee.

“Well, I was a little nervous,” Lee said. “I don't know if they knew or not. I was a little more — not reserved, but kind of quieter than normal. But as we went on and I got to learn more about each of them, I really started to get comfortable and just started to kind of express and really just show off my personality.”

Haley Lee :: John E. Hoover / AllSooners

“When I got on the phone,” Gasso said, “it was just a sweet voice and a wonderful conversation.”

“It was really fun,” Lee said. “I got to see the family side of everyone, and I really drew and connected with that. So I was really excited. Family's really big to me, so just getting to be with that and getting to really grasp that was very important for me as well.”

Eventually, Lee came to Norman on a visit over the holiday break.

“It was Grace and I,” Gasso said. “We were like the only ones in town. And she came on campus with her mother and her grandmother, and sitting with her, I just — this is going to be weird, but kind of fell in love with her personality.

“Just so happy that I wasn't so lame to say, ‘Oh, no, I don't want to do that.’ ”

Haley Lee :: John E. Hoover / AllSooners

Lee has certainly delivered the goods. Her batting average going into Saturday’s winner’s bracket semifinal game with Tennessee is .391. As the designated player and backup catcher to Kinzie Hansen, she’s among the team leaders with 14 home runs, 51 RBIs and 55 runs scored. Her grand slam in last week's Super Regional victory over Clemson showed her penchant for big moments.

And Lee’s outgoing personality has been just as perfect a fit on the OU roster. She chants and sings, she dances and skips, she spikes the bat in key moments and waves her arms to get the crowd going. She’s an endless source of energy for her teammates.

“Haley just has a carefree nature about her,” said pitcher Jordy Bahl, “where it’s like if any one of us is taking it way too seriously, we can talk to Haley Lee for five seconds and all the sudden we’re like, ‘Oh, OK, we’re cool, we’re chilling.’ So just, I think that energy in the dugout when there is pressure all the time, it just kind of helps everyone keep things in perspective.”

In Thursday’s press conference, while answering a question about Lee, Gasso turned to her right and addressed Lee directly.

“I’m going to say this to you,” Gasso said, “because you have a career in like, cartoon voices.”

When the laughter in the interview room subsided, Gasso turned back to the press.

“She is in the dugout — she's not on the field all the time — and she's near me enough that there are so many different voices coming out of her,” Gasso said. “I'm not going to make you imitate any, but it is a trip. Again, I can't even — I keep looking down like, ‘Who is making that sound?’ It's this one right here.”

Lee has told the story before about how she came to ride Harleys. Thursday, she offered a quick retelling.

Haley Lee's home run trot against Texas :: BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN-USA TODAY NETWORK

“Long story short, my grandma used to ride motorcycles in the day, and she had one in her garage, and she was offering up to my guy cousins,” Lee said, “and I'm like, ‘Well Grandma, why can't I have it? Like, I'll take it from you.’

“My parents were like ‘No,’ but I'm kind of hardheaded. So I went and scheduled me a (riding) class anyways, paid for it and everything. I'm like, ‘It's nonrefundable, so I'm going to go.

“Then got my license, took the bike to get fixed, and then I just started riding. It's really fun. It's really freeing. The weather in Norman isn't always the best, but when it is, I'm out there. So it's fun.”

That story partly defines Haley Lee and what she brings to the OU softball team: grit, attitude, stubbornness and determination, as well as a commitment to doing things the right way. She didn’t just grab her grandmother’s Harley, she signed up for a riding safety class. Those qualities — and the cartoon voices — have endeared her to her teammates and coaches as the Sooners try to win their third national championship in a row.

“Just getting to take this path and getting to experience it with such great players and great teammates, they've really made the journey like, the funnest it could have been,” Lee said. “I'm very excited to be here. I was watching just the media videos that everybody was getting to do earlier and just kind of taking it in.

“It's really been a blessing to be here today and to be here with these girls. So I'm excited, and I'm very excited to be here.”

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