Heart over height, a motto that UC Irvine senior guard Haleigh Talbert has lived by throughout her basketball career.
 
Although Haleigh has gotten used to being the shortest on her team, an early growth spurt actually made her one of the tallest girls in her fifth grade class. Since she was growing at a rate much faster than her peers, her mom asked her doctor how tall he thought she would be, and the response gave both of them hope as he predicted about 6-foot-1. But after a few years went by and she only added a couple more inches, it became clear that wouldn't be the case.
 
So, standing at all of 5-foot-4, Haleigh's physical stature was often overlooked on the basketball court. Although it doesn't take long to notice that her talent, effort, hustle, attitude and work ethic more than make up for her lack of height, Haleigh has had her fair share of doubters, including herself during her time at Euless Trinity High School.
 
"I had so many coaches that would say if you had a couple more inches on you, you would be unstoppable," Haleigh recalled. "I used to hear it all the time growing up and after a while, I started to believe it. I started battling with my confidence, and began to think that because of my height, I wasn't going to be able to be as great as I wanted to be."
 
The fact that her friends and teammates were getting scholarship offers, while she was struggling to even get looked at, didn't help quiet her doubts. But, she soon realized that she couldn't let that take away from her love and joy for the game. She started to ignore the comments about her height, stopped thinking about factors that she couldn't control, and continued to put in the work. Her mom also put her on an EYBL team, with the help of the recommendation from her best friend, who made sure the coach knew she was good enough to be given a chance.
 
That started to get more exposure for Haleigh, but she still didn't receive any serious consideration from college coaches until her athleticism and effort caught the eye of then first-year UC Irvine head coach Tamara Inoue.
 
"Haleigh didn't have an off-switch, and with that we knew her work ethic would never be an issue," Coach Inoue said. "It was also made very clear that she was a great teammate. We saw with our own eyes her potential, and I was told by one of my mentors to always trust your eyes, so there was no doubt I wanted her as an Anteater."
 
With the belief Coach Inoue had in Haleigh, she received her first and only Division I offer on her official visit. Although Haleigh, who was born and raised in Texas, had never even been to California and didn't know a whole lot about UCI, she knew she couldn't let the opportunity pass her up.
 
"For a long time, I didn't feel like I was good enough to play DI," Haleigh said. "And at one stage, I started to think that I wouldn't even play college basketball, which was really tough for me. So, when I was given that opportunity from UCI, it meant a lot to me and it was the greatest feeling I had felt in a long time. I committed on the spot because I didn't want to let it slip through my hands and regret it for the rest of my life. The coaches saw something in me, which made me comfortable enough to commit and know that I would be in good hands."
 
It ended up being the right decision for both parties as Haleigh has played an integral role in the turnaround of the Anteater women's basketball program. Before her arrival, UC Irvine had gone through three consecutive losing seasons with 17 total wins during that stretch. But, now in her fourth year, Haleigh and her teammates have secured their third winning season since 2017-18. They went 18-14 in her freshman year, and followed with the program's first 20-win campaign since 1984-85 in her sophomore year.
 
"Haleigh absolutely knew her why when stepping on campus," Coach Inoue said. "She has no quit in her body and most importantly, her respect and gratitude for her coaches and teammates is so valuable to the culture that I envisioned when taking this job here at UCI. She is a part of my first official recruiting class and I knew having her was by far one of my better decisions as a head coach here."
 
Haleigh has also seen tremendous growth individually during her time at UC Irvine. After playing in every game her first three seasons, and knowing that she always had the support of her teammates and coaches, Haleigh built her confidence to a new level, which has shown in both her play and leadership on the court as a senior team captain.
 
"I've always played with my heart and I feel that's really what has allowed me to play the game I have here at UCI," Haleigh noted. "I think this has been my best year as far as knowing the game and actually taking what the coaches have taught me. It's about knowing my role - still driving and scoring when I need to, but also improving my mid-range and outside game."
 
One of the roles most people wouldn't expect a 5-foot-4 guard to fill at the Division I level is in rebounding. Over the last two seasons, Haleigh has ranked among the top three on the team in rebounds per game.
 
"For me, rebounding is a will to get in there," Haleigh said. "I've never really worked on it outside of practice; it's always just been something I know we need to do, so I try to do it. Sometimes I'm just in the right place at the right time, but I do think it's mostly a will and a want to try to help the team."
 
Whether it be rebounding, defense or scoring, Haleigh has proven to the doubters that she can compete with the best. Her underdog mentality and drive to be the best she can be, has also carried over to her work off the court. Not only is she a two-time Dean's List honoree as a student at UCI, but last August she also started a podcast with her older sister, who played basketball at an HBCU (Langston University). The podcast is called 'It Means More' where they discuss subjects such as mental health and battling confidence issues, while interviewing both collegiate and professional athletes about their personal experiences.
 
"My sister and I get along really well, and we're funny people, so to do a podcast together was something I really wanted to do," Haleigh stated. "I just want the younger generation to hear our stories so they know that if they are going through adversity, it's only going to make them stronger in the end. We are all about positivity, empowering people and letting them hear real stories they can relate to."
 
The passion to help others and have a positive impact on those around her is also apparent when Haleigh, who will be graduating with a degree in education and a minor in business management, talks about her post-collegiate goals of becoming a coach.
 
"I want to coach high school basketball because I want to give back to kids like me, who are in the position I was where you feel like you're not good enough to play at a higher level," Haleigh said. "Eventually, my sister and I would like to come up with our own AAU or select team. I hope everything can come together because I really just want to help people. That's the main thing for me is helping the younger generation."
 
As Haleigh looks to expand on her legacy in the final weeks of her UCI career, and moves on to forge a new path in the next chapter of her life, one thing is certain - never count her out.