Patty Gasso

Patricia Marie Gasso (née Froehlich; born May 27, 1962) is an American softball coach for the Oklahoma Sooners. She has been the head softball coach at the University of Oklahoma since 1995. She has led the Sooners team to eight national championships (2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024) and has compiled a career record of 1,515–352–2 and a winning percentage of .810.

Early years
Born Patricia Marie Froehlich in Los Angeles, Gasso grew up in Torrance, California. She played softball at California State University, Long Beach. She also coached softball at Long Beach City College from 1990 to 1994, compiling a record of 161–59–1.

Oklahoma
In 29 years at the University of Oklahoma, she has compiled a record of 1,395–344–2 and a winning percentage of .800. Her teams have advanced to the Women's College World Series fourteen times and won the national championship eight times in 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Her winning percentage of .802 ranks the highest of Division I college softball coaches with at least 1,000 career wins.

In 1999, the University of Oklahoma won its third Big 12 Conference championship in five years at Oklahoma, but financial difficulties nearly ended her tenure following the 1999 season. Gasso noted: "Money was tight, and my husband, Jim, had actually gone back to California because it was hard to find a job here at the time. So here I was raising our two children and trying to coach a Division-I softball program, which was very demanding of my time and energy."

Gasso remained in Oklahoma for the 2000 season despite her husband's return to California. The 2000 University of Oklahoma team compiled a record of 66–8 and defeated UCLA three to one in the Women's College World Series to win the Sooners' first softball national championship.

Following the national championship in 2000, the University of Oklahoma gave Gasso "a significant salary hike," and her husband was able to return to Oklahoma. Over the next 12 years, Gasso built the Sooners into a national softball power, winning over 40 games every year. The 2001 team finished with a 50–9 record, and the 2007 team finished 55–8.

Gasso's 2012 team advanced to the finals of the Women's College World Series but lost the national championship in a close series against Alabama. The 2012 team finished its season with a 54–10 record. In late June 2012, the Oklahoma University Board of Regents extended Gasso's contract through the 2017 season.

Gasso was inducted into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Hall of Fame in 2012.

Gasso reached a milestone on March 15, 2015, when she got her 1,000th win as the head coach of Oklahoma in a resounding win over East Carolina.

On June 6, 2017, Gasso and the Sooner softball team swept Florida in the national championship, winning Gasso her second national championship in two years and fourth overall.

On June 10, 2021, Gasso's Sooners defeated Florida State in the national championship, winning Gasso's and the school's fifth national championship.

On June 8, 2022, Gasso's Sooners defeated Texas in the national championship, winning Gasso's and the school's sixth national championship.

On June 8, 2023, Gasso's Sooners defeated Florida State in the national championship, winning Gasso's and the school's seventh national championship, and their third consecutive championship. They became the first team to three-peat since UCLA from 1988 to 1990. The 2023 team nearly finished the season undefeated with a record of 61–1. Their only loss came in February to Baylor, 4–3, during an early season tournament played in Waco, Texas.

On June 6, 2024, Gasso's Sooners again defeated Texas in the national championship series, in a rematch from 2022, winning Gasso's and the school's eighth national championship. Gasso's eight national titles tied Arizona's Mike Candrea for the most by any coach in Division I softball history. With the win, Oklahoma became the first team in college softball history to four-peat.

Head coaching record
The following table lists Gasso's head coaching record at the NCAA level.