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When Julie Smith stepped back onto the grounds of the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga., for the NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP earlier this month, all the memories of the inaugural Olympic softball competition came flooding back to her.

Nearly 30 years later, the Pomona-Pitzer associate head coach, who won gold as a member of the United States squad in 1996, could still feel strong emotions of her historic accomplishment.

“Returning to the exact dirt where we clinched Olympic gold wasn’t just nostalgia; it was a full-circle reminder that dreams don’t have expiration dates,” Smith said. “The emotions? Gratitude flooding in, pride swelling for what our legacy team accomplished together, and fierce inspiration knowing the next generation was chasing their own glory on the same dirt as I played on.”

Playing on the complex’s stadium field — where her photo is on the wall near the entrance — Smith helped guide that current generation to six runs over the first two innings and a 11-5 victory over Mount Union, the first loss of the season for the Raiders, who have gone 11-3 since that defeat. Following the win, Smith went out to her second base position with her glove and took a few ground balls and fully absorbed the moment.

“That feeling did flood back as our Hens were walking into the stadium,” she said. “People chanting U-S-A and holding up American flags was literally the coolest feeling ever.”

Smith said playing in the Olympics was a remarkable experience, something she and her teammates, and anyone who witnessed it, will never forget. Even though the Americans were heavy favorites to win gold behind legendary pitching and a powerful offense, doing it was still a pressure-packed environment.

“The pressure was real,” she said, “but we prepared for that moment over years. The people before us that paved the way, fueled me. I was lucky to have Margie Wright, my college coach at Fresno State, as our assistant coach, who helped me through some tough times.”

Smith also mentioned Roger Dawes, the founder and coach of the Redding Rebels, and coach of the gold medal-winning U.S. team at the World Championship in New Zealand, as someone that helped make her the player she was, and allowed her to manage that pressure.

“I attribute a lot to playing on those teams in the summers,” she said. “Pressure is just proof you’re playing for something bigger than yourself. We were all reminded of that in so many different ways! We didn’t shrink from it — we rose to it. Every pitch, every swing, every defensive play was us saying, ‘This is who we are.’”

That feeling never wavered, not even after the Americans’ shocking 2-1 loss to Australia in their final game before the medal round. Joanne Brown’s two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th was Australia’s lone hit in that contest.

In the semifinals against China, Sheila Cornell singled home Dot Richardson in the 10th inning to break a scoreless tie, and Richardson’s homer in the gold medal game helped the Americans beat China again, 3-1, to secure the Olympic crown. In nine games, the U.S. outscored their opponents 38-8, with the offense hitting eight homers, and the pitching staff collecting three shutouts and 99 strikeouts.

“When that final out sealed the gold, it wasn’t just relief … it was pure validation that heart, hustle, and belief can turn pressure into a gold medal,” Smith said. “Playing that first Olympics on home soil turned the pressure into pure fire in our bellies. We weren’t just chasing gold; we were defending America’s backyard, and playing for those who paved the way before us and the millions of girls who were playing behind us. What an awesome responsibility and feeling!”

“Our feelings were, ‘This is our house — let’s show the world why. This is America’s sport, and nobody is going to take that from us!’"

Smith had the distinction of being the first softball player awarded a gold medal.

“I was the first to get the medal around my neck, because I was the shortest,” she laughed. “The second the medal went around my neck I looked up and somehow in the crowd of 10,000 my eyes locked with my mom’s. I completely lost it! I knew right then that this medal was so much more, and that deep gratitude for my family and those who helped me get there was all I could think about and it overwhelmed me.”

That moment on the podium was validation.

“Winning proved what we already knew deep down: The U.S. team wasn’t just good — we were the best in the world,” Smith said. “It was a super-cool moment!”

“The anthem hit different that night. It wasn’t background music; it was our victory song. Chills ran down my spine, and tears running down my face as the flag rose, and I thought about every little girl watching who now believed she could stand right there one day. Tears, pride, and this overwhelming gratitude flooded in — gratitude for my family first, teammates, for the coaches who pushed us, and for the country that cheered us on. Unforgettable.”

Yet, Smith said she doesn’t really talk about her own success with her college players.

“If they have questions, I let them engage me,” she said. “When I'm coaching, it isn't about me or my past, it is all about them and their futures. I use my experiences to hopefully motivate them to be the best they can be.”

Of course, one wouldn’t blame her if she wanted to talk about being the starting second baseman on a gold medal-winning Olympic softball team, or the member of two World Championship teams and three gold medal-winning Pan American squads. Or that she was an All-America player for the 1987 NCAA national champion at Texas A&M.

Or that she earned two more All-America honors after transferring to Fresno State, where the Bulldogs were the runner-up to UCLA’s third-straight NCAA title in 1990. Or that Smith was selected for the NCAA’s 25th Anniversary Team in 2006, and is an inductee into both the Charter Oak (Calif.) High and City of Fresno Hall of Fames.

“I don't at all focus on me being a gold medalist,” she said. “It's more of a general discussion about respect, playing for something bigger than you, handling pressure, those sorts of things. Not so much history.”

Still, she has been part of a lot of softball’s history. Something well worth celebrating.