NCAA softball coaches marvel at how Women's College World Series has evolved
OKLAHOMA CITY — Kelly Inouye-Perez was 18 years old, playing for the Gordon Panthers of LaPalma, California, when she first saw Hall of Fame Stadium. Inouye-Perez and superstar Lisa Fernandez led the Panthers to the 1988 Junior Olympic Hall of Fame championship in Oklahoma City’s new softball venue.
Inouye-Perez, a catcher, remembers a picture that captured her celebrating on Fernandez’s back, with the scoreboard in the background.
“We thought, ‘Oh, my God, that is the biggest scoreboard we've ever seen,’” Inouye-Perez said. “It was just huge.”
The stadium then seemed so grand.
Inouye-Perez has returned many times to Hall of Fame Stadium. She’s been a multiple NCAA champion as a UCLA catcher (with Fernandez pitching), a multiple NCAA champion as a UCLA assistant coach and a multiple NCAA champion as UCLA’s head coach (now 16 years on the job).
And Inouye-Perez marvels at how the stadium and the Women’s College World Series have changed. Inouye-Perez was part of the first WCWS played in OKC, in 1990, and has her Bruins in the 2022 field.
She laughed about the old days, with kids by the dozens rolling down the grass berms down each base line. The stadium then seated 2,076.
Now it seats 13,000, with an upper deck and seats extending down the lines all the way to the outfield wall, and outfielder bleachers surrounding a giant scoreboard that dwarfs the original that Inouye-Perez thought was so huge so long ago.
“The stadium itself was nice, but to see what it's evolved to, the grass knolls to stands to bleachers now on the outfield,” Inouye-Perez said. “You remember coming back and seeing the bleachers in the outfield and going, ‘Oh, wow, now they're putting them in the outfield,’ and now I look up and say, ‘They're in the sky in the outfield. To see skyboxes, and it's just the evolution.”
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The stadium and the event have turned into a completely different animal. Think of the difference between the county fair and DisneyWorld. That’s what’s become of the Women’s College World Series.
Inouye-Perez is one of three WCWS head coaches this year who also played in the event, joining Arizona’s Caitlin Lowe, who was a four-time All-American at Arizona and an Olympic silver medalist (2008), and Oregon State’s Laura Berg, who led Fresno State to the 1998 WCWS title and is one of the greatest players in softball history.
“I have to say, it felt so grand back then,” said Lowe, who played at Arizona from 2004-07 — winning consecutive WCWS championships in 2006 and '07 — and succeeded the legendary Mike Candrea as the Wildcats' head coach last off-season. “This stadium felt so big and larger than life.
“It's crazy, because you look at it now with the triple deck, and it's just a whole different vibe. It gets better and better every year. I think the ratings get better and better every year. The competition gets better and better.
“It's just cool to see the sport grow. Oklahoma City and the state of Oklahoma really embraced this tournament and just make it an A-class event.”
Berg played long past Fresno State; she medaled for the U.S. in four Olympics — three consecutive golds in 1996, 2000 and '04 and a silver in 2008. She played in a variety of international events at Hall of Fame Stadium over the years.
“Oh, my gosh, where do I even start?” she asked about the venue’s evolution. “Remember the grass berm? What they've done to this facility is phenomenal. I mean, outside of the Olympic Games, this is the place to play. This is the place to be.”
But despite the stadium improvements, Inouye-Perez said the substance of the venue remains the same: opportunity.
"Nothing replaces my playing opportunities on this stage, and I think the greatest moments were just being on the stage and having great success,” Inouye-Perez said. “My saddest was the last day, because I thought it would be the last time I would be here in Oklahoma.”
But now Inouye-Perez has become a UCLA icon – part of every Bruin team since 1989 – and has been in OKC most years since, including 24 trips to the WCWS.
“I just walked down these stairs to the stadium to get down to this pressroom, and to see the changes to the stadium, to see the stands, to see just how much the NCAA and USA Softball, the city of Oklahoma have invested into this stadium to celebrate this championship, has been just phenomenal.
“The dugout now goes to locker rooms and there are bathrooms in the locker rooms. There's fieldhouses. I have been so fortunate to be able to see the evolution ... and I celebrate it every time.”
That’s what the Women’s College World Series is. A celebration. And those who were here in the early days can celebrate it most.
Berry Tramel can be reached at btramel@oklahoman.com.