Patty Gasso identifies the greatest honor a coach could ever achieve

The union of Patty Gasso and USA Softball seems like a no-brainer.

The most successful head coach in college softball, located right down the road from the organization’s headquarters in Oklahoma City.

While it wasn’t quite the slam dunk it might appear, Gasso was officially introduced as the head coach of the USA Softball Women’s National Team during a press conference Tuesday at Devon Park.

She’ll coach the Olympic team through the 2025-28 cycle, including the LA28 Olympic Games, where softball is expected to be held in Oklahoma City.

“This moment is truly special in my career and it feels like a dream come true,” Gasso said. “To be handed the baton means a lot to me. Being chosen for this role is the highest honor a coach could ever receive.”

Gasso is from Los Angeles and remembers the Olympics there in 1984.

“I think I went to Olympic volleyball because it was in Long Beach,” Gasso said. “And it was amazing energy. People everywhere. It just felt different. It felt like nothing I’ve ever felt before in the way of a sporting event.”

Then after her second season at OU, Gasso went to Columbus, Georgia, where softball made its Olympics debut a little more than a month after the Women’s College World Series was played there.

“I felt so honored to be there, but never in a million years would I tell you that I thought I would be sitting here right now,” Gasso said. “I just always kind of stayed in the background until I thought it might be the right time for me.”