Women in Sports Trailblazers Honored: Queens College Women’s Basketball Team 1972-73

The success and impact of the 1972-73 Queens College women’s basketball team will be honored during the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center’s Women’s Event 8 on October 29, 2005. Members of the team, the Lady Knights, will be recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the event for their trailblazing efforts that have paved the way for women in sports. The annual event recognizes women who have served as agents of change for the lesbian community.

In 1972, Congress passed Title IX of the Education Amendments prohibiting gender discrimination in education, including sports programs. That year, the Queens College team capitalized on Title IX by attaining a 22-5 overall record and earning a place in the national championship tournament, the first women’s team from New York City to do so. Ultimately, the team finished second and their accomplishments received unprecedented attention from the public and media. Just two years later, the team played the first women’s collegiate basketball game at the renowned Madison Square Garden.

The team is also the first inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame, joining a handful of others including the 1969-70 NBA champion Knicks; the 1949-50 City College team that won the NCAA and NIT crowns; and the 1963-64 undefeated Power Memorial High School team that featured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Lady Knight team members include Debbie “the Pear” Mason, Cathy Andruzzi; Maggie Hilgenberg; Maryann Jecewiz; co-captain Shirley Johnson; Gail Marquis, a member of the silver medal US Olympic team in 1976; Yvette Pierre; Judy Milewski; co-captain Barbara Riccardi; Nancy Rullo; Judy Spinal Maureen Steuerer; Rachel Wells; Lucille Kyvallos; and Connie VanHousen.


About Women’s Event 8

Women’s Event 8 will kick off at 7pm on October 29th in Chelsea Piers’ Pier Sixty. Produced by New York’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, the event is an opportunity to honor trailblazers of the community. Past honorees have included Kate Clinton, Whoopi Goldberg, and Eve Ensler.

This year we are pleased to pay tribute to four remarkable honorees who served as agents of change for women:

Judy Dlugacz, president and founder of Olivia Cruises and Resorts;

Lady Knights—Queens College Women’s Basketball Team of 1972-973;

Nancy R. Sweetser, founder of the unique Miracle House;

Janet Weinberg, former Center Director of Development and Board Co-Chair.

Log on to www.gaycenter.org for more information or to purchase tickets.

About the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center

Established in 1983, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, 208 West 13th St. in New York City, is the largest LGBT community center on the East Coast. More than 6,000 people visit the Center weekly and 300 groups meet there. www.gaycenter.org.

Contact: Anthony Ramos, Director of Communications, 212-620-7310 (office) or 646-765-4902 (cell), aramos@gaycenter.org