Back on June 3, 2006, Cat Osterman played softball for the last time in a Texas uniform.

In the 16 years since, no Longhorns softball player has worn Osterman's No. 8. Former UT coach Connie Clark wouldn't allow it. She set aside Osterman's number just like she had previously done with the No. 14 that once belonged to Christa Williams, who pitched at Texas from 1998-99 and, like Osterman, was also an Olympian.

Not that ambitious recruits didn't still request No. 8.

"We'd always just kind of laugh, like, yeah, well, that one's not going to be available," Clark recalled on Monday.

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Mike White replaced Clark after the 2018 season. Williams' No. 14 has been dusted off once since the coaching change, but the rule for Osterman's No. 8 has remained the same.

That rule, however, was unofficial. Until this past weekend, anyway.

On Saturday, Texas formally retired Osterman's number. She was honored in a pregame ceremony just ahead of the Longhorns' upset of No. 1 Oklahoma at McCombs Field.

"Coming to Texas was a dream come true, and then being able to have the career I had was just something that I never had imagined," Osterman said. "For the culmination of it all and to now be able to say your number's retired at a program that means so much to you, it's truly an honor."

Osterman played at Texas from 2002-03 and again from 2005-06, missing the 2004 season while preparing for the first of her three Olympic appearances.

Over the 1,105⅔ innings that she pitched, Osterman compiled a 136-25 record with a 0.51 ERA, 2,265 strikeouts, 20 solo no-hitters and seven perfect games. She still owns most of UT's pitching records. Her mark of 14.34 strikeouts per seven innings remains an NCAA standard.

Texas' only four-time softball All-American, Osterman led the Longhorns to the Women's College World Series three times. She was the USA Softball player of the year in 2003, 2005 and 2006.

"When you think of Texas softball, Cat Osterman's the first name you think of. She's synonymous with it," White said.

"She's just such an icon," Clark said. "Just to become a household name worldwide and be able to represent Texas at the very highest level and do it with class and integrity is pretty special."

Many of those aforementioned accomplishments were read aloud during Osterman's ceremony. As her jersey was displayed on a nearby easel, Osterman was accompanied to the pitching circle by her parents, husband, stepdaughter and in-laws. One of her two brothers missed the festivities, but she said that absence was forgiven since "my sister-in-law gets induced tomorrow night."

Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso hugged Osterman and Sooners senior Lynnsie Elam handed her flowers. Osterman also turned 39 on Saturday, so an announced crowd of 1,698 — the largest-ever at McCombs Field — sang happy birthday to her during the fourth inning.

Osterman also threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Megan Willis, who was Osterman's catcher at Texas for two years, was behind the plate to receive the offering.

"(Megan) asked me, she's like, is this the final time I'm catching a pitch? Or are we going to do this a couple more times?" Osterman said. "That was the running joke."

In the minds of many, what happened on Saturday was long overdue. Previously, Texas had a longstanding policy against retiring the jerseys of its female athletes. The athletic department's Hall of Honor, which inducted Osterman in 2011, was considered a crowning achievement.

An athletic department now run by Chris Del Conte recently began to rethink how it honored women who had starred at Texas. During the 2019-20 school year, Kamie Ethridge and Clarissa Davis had their jerseys raised into the Erwin Center's rafters.

Texas planned to retire Osterman's jersey on March 25, 2020. However, the pandemic shut down the season on March 13. The ceremony wasn't rescheduled for the following spring, either.

Earlier this school year, Texas attached Osterman's name and number to the wall outside the press box at McCombs Field. She was honored during the Texas-Kansas football game in November. And what had been unofficial for so long became official Saturday.

"Just a little more real for it to officially be official," Osterman said.

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Osterman retired from competitive softball this past fall. She has kept herself busy with her softball development academy that's associated with RBI Austin. She also is a color commentator for Texas softball on the Longhorn Network, so she also was working on Saturday.

From her spot in the press box, Osterman watched as Hailey Dolcini led Texas to a 4-2 victory over previously undefeated Oklahoma. While pitching a complete game, Dolcini allowed just two hits.

"I tell her all the time, I'm a fan," Osterman said of Dolcini. "It's fun to watch and watch her work and carve up hitters. And I think the biggest thing was just mentally she was not fazed no matter what Oklahoma threw at her."

A Fresno State transfer, Dolcini grew up in California. As a young player, she looked up to pitchers like Amanda Scarborough and Danielle Lawrie. And like many, she idolized Osterman.

"The impact she's had on me personally is just second to none," Dolcini said. "I think we were just really trying to give her the best birthday present we could and I think we delivered."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Cat Osterman finally has her No. 8 softball jersey retired at Texas