The NCAA News - Briefly in the News

March 1, 1999

As universities across the nation celebrated the 13th anniversary of National Girls and Women in Sports Day February 4, champion female athletes representing nearly a dozen sports marked the day in Washington D.C., meeting with law makers during congressional visits and a luncheon on Capitol Hill.

The theme of both the luncheon and this year's celebration was "All Girls Allowed," honoring the achievements of girls and women in sports and recognizing the importance of their participation in athletics.

During the luncheon, the Women's Sports Foundation presented Olympic speed skater Bonnie Blair with the Flo Hyman Award, which is the most prestigious award bestowed by the foundation. It is presented annually to an outstanding female athlete who exemplifies the same dignity, spirit and commitment to excellence as the late Hyman, an Olympic volleyball player who died in 1986. Hyman, who was captain of the 1984 U.S. Olympic volleyball team, led her team to a gold medal. While playing in Japan in 1986, she died suddenly from Marfan Syndrome, a connective tissue disorder.

"To be among the athletes receiving the award in Flo's name is truly a great honor," Blair said.

Blair has won more medals -- five gold and one bronze -- than any other U.S. athlete in Winter Olympics history. She also is the only woman ever to win gold medals in the same event in three separate Olympic games. She won the 500-meter race in 1988, 1992 and 1994.

"Athletics has been an incredibly important part of my life," Blair said. "It's given me a great foundation for everything that I do every day of my life. I hope we will all be committed to helping generations to come have even greater opportunities."

Blair received the award from Donna Shalala, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.

"As a nation, we can no more afford to lose the physical and athletics abilities of women than we can afford to lose their creative and intellectual abilities," Shalala said. "All girls must not only be allowed to play sports, they must be encouraged, coached and, above all, inspired to take the field, to test the limits of their endurance and to know the joys -- and the heartache -- of competition."

The luncheon on Capitol Hill was among more than 1,500 events involving hundreds of thousands of participants across the country to celebrate the day.

The annual observance is organized by the Girls Scouts of the USA, Girls Inc., the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport, the Women's Sports Foundation and the YWCA of the USA.

Bulldogs step down

Jim Malosky, head football coach at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, is retiring following his 40-year career with the Bulldogs.

Malosky won more games than any other football coach in NCAA Division II history, winning 255 and losing 125. His teams won three Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships and six Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championships.

Malosky became the Bulldogs' third head football coach in the spring of 1958. Nineteen Bulldogs players were named all-Americans under Malosky, and five went on to play in the National Football League.

Malosky, 70, spent last season on a medical leave of absence after suffering a mild stroke last May. His retirement is effective July 1.

NACWAA holds institute

The National Association of Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators is sponsoring the fifth annual NACWAA/HERS Institute for Administrative Advancement June 19-26 at Bryn Mawr College.

The institute is a one-week program providing training in the management of intercollegiate athletics programs, with special attention given to financial planning, long-range planning, information technology, decision-making processes, policy implementation and leadership skills.

For more information, contact the NACWAA national office at 910/793-8244.

A different kind of streak

The Eastern Illinois University women's volleyball team has a winning streak that doesn't show up in the records books. The Panthers have maintained a minimum 3.000 grade-point average for 25 straight semesters. The streak began after the fall semester 1986 and has continued through the fall semester 1998.

During the streak, 32 student-athletes from the volleyball team have finished with a perfect 4.000, and 13 of head coach Betty Ralston's players have gone on to earn a post-graduate degree. Also, she has coached three GTE Academic All-Americans: Vanessa Wells in 1996, Donna Sicher in 1989 and Laura Bruce in 1986.

The team had a good year on the court as well, finishing 24-7 overall and 17-1 in the Ohio Valley Conference, winning its first regular-season OVC title.

-- Compiled by Kay Hawes