Alice Vol. 5 No. 2

at the university was that no one role on a team is any more
significant than any other role. Every ring, medal, and trophy is
the same size. It’s about coming together as a unit for a common
goal. She said this mantra has manifested itself across all facets of
her life, beyond the realms of softball.
When asked to share the highlight from her collegiate career,
McCleney is quick to reminisce on a 2015 game-winning grand
slam made by infielder Marisa Runyon that earned Alabama a spot
in the Women’s College World Series. When this play was made,
McCleney was in the dugout.
Coach Patrick Murphy recalls the post-game interview in which
McCleney deemed her teammate’s success the peak of her time in
the program. He said he still gets chills thinking about it. It was a
testament to who she was both as a leader and a team player.
“At the end of my career I want to say, ‘I was your best teammate
and your hardest worker,’” McCleney said. “If I can say those two
things, and be a combination of those two things, I’m going to be
fine with that being my legacy.”
The coaching staff for USA Softball were quick to notice that
McCleney practiced what she preached.
“Haylie wakes up in the morning and the day takes a step back,
because she brings so much zest and vigor that all around her get
sucked up by her energy,” said Women’s National Team Head
Coach Ken Eriksen. “She brings that to the ball field also. She is our
‘spark.’ The game has its best ambassador in Haylie McCleney.”
This principle is just one of many that had secured McCleney’s
opportunity to return to Rhoads Stadium as the first Alabamaborn
Olympian softball player.
Fueled by the momentous opportunity to watch McCleney
compete for Team USA against the very women following in her
footsteps, in addition to the renown loyalty of the Alabama Softball
fanbase, $52,000 in tickets were sold within the first three hours
of availability. However, on March 13, the heartbreaking decision
was made to cancel the tour stop due to the university’s COVID-
19-induced decision to cease all athletic programming for the rest
of the semester.
While the entire Tuscaloosa community had buzzed with
the excitement stimulated by yet another softball season, the
same could not be said for the sport at-large, particularly on a
professional level.
The female athlete narrative is one plagued by stigma and
struggle, regardless of global pandemics.
“All you have to do is look at Major League Baseball, and then
look at us,” McCleney said.
While the MLB’s presenting sponsorship of the “Stand Beside
Her” Tour and recent emphasis on female leadership at the
executive level are encouraging, McCleney says that she hopes to
see more intentional efforts being made to promote professional
softball.
According to USA TODAY Sports’ 2019 MLB salary survey,
MLB Salaries range from $550,000 to $35 million. After earning
her master’s degree in exercise physiology, McCleney has spent
the past two years working a full-time job as a strength and
conditioning coach at Florida A&M University on top of preparing
for her chance to make the Olympic roster.
Despite this sobering reality, McCleney believes that the “Stand
Beside Her” Tour was instrumental in showing the next generation
of female athletes that they don’t have to shy away from their
dreams. She wants these young athletes to know that “you can
keep going after college.”
“You don’t have to stop when you get your degree and
immediately go into the ‘real world,’” McCleney said. “You don’t
have to be a coach if you want to stay around the game. You can
play this game into your thirties, into your forties. Our entire
Olympic team is trying to get our sport to this point.”
McCleney hopes the tour, despite the cancellations, will help
fans see this, too, and that they will continue to support the game
of softball.
“It’s about the fan experience,” McCleney said. “[It’s] for us to
be able to see who’s standing beside us, who is standing beside the
female athlete, who is with us, who is pushing our sport forward,
who is pushing female sports as a whole forward.”
To the softball fanbase, she poses this challenge:
“Do you want to stand with us? Do you actually want to support
us? If so, get in line. Let’s all stand together, and let’s do this
together.”
As a coach, Murphy takes a personal stake in the tour’s mission,
as well, despite the university’s call to cancel.
“It’s a one-time thing,” Murphy said. “We need to play our
cards right in terms of promotions and marketing, really getting
the stars out there, like a Haylie, so people can see what a great
person she is and what a great athlete she is. Just how fun this
sport is. It’s grown and grown and grown, but this is going to be a
big boost for the entire sport.”
McCleney’s narrative boasts a cast of characters who have
answered the question “Will you stand beside her?” with a
resounding “yes.” In her story lies a microcosmic vision for female
athletes across the globe — a vision of a world in which women’s
sports are welcomed with open arms and celebrated with the pomp
and circumstance of equal wages and international recognition.
But, change takes time, and uncertainty lingers as COVID-19
continues to take its toll. Tokyo 2020’s future hangs in the balance,
but for now, USA Softball has one thing left on the agenda: winning
the gold. As sold-out stadiums now sit empty and uncertainty
threatens a life-long dream, these women can be sure of this:
“We’re standing beside each other throughout this whole
process,” McCleney said. “We’re with each other. It’s all 18 of us
against the world.”
66 Spring 2020