ROANOKE, Va. – A Roanoke native and William Byrd High School graduate, Haley Overstreet has always had a knack for athletics.
“Ever since I was a little grasshopper, I was heavily involved in sports,” Overstreet said.
That proved to be true even at the college ranks where she started her career at Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville. While there, she was part of the inaugural women’s soccer team.
She transferred to Ferrum College in 2014 — playing soccer, lacrosse, and field hockey. While the first two were a given, the field hockey came on a whim.
Overstreet recalls just becoming involved after her lacrosse teammates encouraged her. That decision paid off in more ways than one.
Overstreet is the only Ferrum female student athlete to score a goal in three different sports. More importantly, she had an opportunity to start her coaching career after her playing days as a full-time assistant coach for the Panthers field hockey team.
“Sometimes D3 gets a bad rap like they’re not as competitive or they didn’t make it D1 but that’s just not the case,” said Overstreet. “Going there was so monumental for me because I was able to grow as a person.”
Overstreet then earned her master’s degree from West Virginia University in 2021 and decided to give sports administration a try. She served as the Director of Championships for the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) for a short time before realizing her calling in coaching.
“Coaching is unique because you never know where you’re going to land,” Overstreet said.
In March of this year, she accepted a job as an assistant field hockey coach at Depauw University in Indiana.
Through her journey, Overstreet credits her former coach and mentor Carrie Hanshue Austin, as part of her motivation and drive to be better.
“She’s guided me in more ways than I can count,” Overstreet said. “She was the one who helped me realize my potential and gained confidence in knowing I could coach a sport that I only played for three months at a highly competitive level.”
Overstreet has been and will always be an energetic D3 athletics and women in sports advocate.
“We’re starting to see that maturation in women in athletics but we still have a long way to go,” she said.