Greensboro, N.C. (theACC.com) - The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame announced that Nora Lynn Finch, ACC Senior Associate Commissioner/Women’s Basketball, will be inducted into the Class of 2019. The members of the Class of 2019 are: Nora Lynn Finch (Contributor), Beth Bass (Contributor), Joan Cronan (Contributor), Ticha Penicheiro (International Player), Ruth Riley (Player), Carolyn Bush Roddy (Veteran Player), and Valerie Still (Player).
The 2019 Induction will mark the 21st Class of Inductees to be honored by the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, which held its grand opening and inaugural induction in 1999. The Class of 2019 will be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, receiving their coveted Eastman Trophy and Baron Championship Induction Ring, on June 8, 2019, in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tickets for the ceremony are on sale now. For more information regarding ticket packages, please visit
www.WBHOF.com.
In addition to inducting the Class of 2019, the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame will recognize key contributors from the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) for their contributions to the game with a display at the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame entitled "Trailblazers of the Game." The AIAW will join nine other teams and organizations that have been recognized as "Trailblazers of the Game." The AIAW was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and was one of the key contributors to the significant advancements of women's athletics at the collegiate level.
The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Directors serves as the selection committee in determining which individuals will be inducted each year and which groups will be honored as "Trailblazers of the Game." Voting is based on minimum candidate requirements, which include record of performance, national or international recognition, and contributions to the game of women's basketball.
During her tenure with the ACC, Finch has overseen the management and promotion of the annual women’s basketball tournament, coordinated the regular-season conference schedule, and served as the Commissioner’s liaison to the league’s 15 women’s basketball programs and the women’s basketball committee. She was named one of Sports Business Journal’s Game Changers in 2015 and received the 2017 Jostens-Berenson Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her lifelong commitment of service to women’s basketball by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. She was recently named a finalist for the Class of 2019 Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
Prior to her arrival at the ACC, Finch had been at NC State for more than 30 years, most recently as the department’s Senior Associate Director and Senior Woman Administrator. In her time at NC State, she was a member of numerous important committees on campus, as well as on the ACC and NCAA levels. She was co-chair of the university committee to build the Lonnie Poole Golf Course, and the Wolfpack Club presented her with its Shavlik Award for lifetime service in 2012. She was selected to the 125 Transformational Women of NC State in 2013. She served on the NCAA Division I Management Council, NCAA Division I Championships Cabinet and the NCAA Division I Membership Committee, and as a member of the women’s basketball rules committee, she led the vote to change the size of the women’s basketball to its current size and weight. Most recently, she led the effort to implement significant rules changes including the 10-second backcourt violation, reinstatement of four quarters, elimination of the one-and-one foul shot, and the ability to advance the ball into the front court in the last minute of play.
Finch was named the chair of the inaugural NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee in 1981 and served in that capacity until August 1988. In 1987, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) awarded her its first WBCA Special Recognition Award for Athletics Administrators. The ACC presented her with its inaugural women’s basketball Distinguished Service Award in 1989 and with its inaugural President’s Award for Exemplary Service in 2008. In 1999, The Orlando Sentinel recognized Finch as its 12th Most Influential Person in Women’s Athletics in the 20th Century.
A 1970 graduate of Western Carolina, Finch graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in education and earned a master’s degree in education from Western Carolina. She was twice inducted into the Western Carolina Hall of Fame, in 1991 and 2003. Before joining NC State, she coached the women’s basketball teams at Wake Forest University (1971-73) and Peace College (1973-77) and was also Director of Athletics at Peace College (1973-77).
For more information on the 2019 Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Weekend, please visit
www.wbhof.com.
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame - Class of 2019
NOTE: The following bio capsules highlight a few major accomplishments, but not the comprehensive contributions these individuals have made to women's basketball.
NORA LYNN FINCH (Contributor)
1981-1988 - Inaugural Chair of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee.
Member of several key NCAA committees, including the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Oversight Committee, the NCAA Division I Management Committee, and the NCAA Division I Championships Cabinet (Chair), as well as many other committees.
The Atlantic Coach Conference's (ACC) first female Assistant Athletics Director.
BETH BASS (Contributor)
2001-2014 - CEO of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA).
2007- Assisted in the launch of WBCA's Think Pink campaign in support of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
2004 - President's Award from the National Association of Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS).
JOAN CRONAN (Contributor)
Currently Athletic Director Emeritus for the University of Tennessee after serving there as Women's Athletic Director for nearly 3 decades.
2005 Athletic Director of the Year & 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award by Women Leaders in College Sports (formerly NACWAA)
2017 first recipient of the NCAA Pat Summitt Award & 2018 recipient of NACDA's top award - The James Corbett Award
TICHA PENICHEIRO (International Player)
Russian League Champion (2007), EuroLeague Champion (2007), Czech League Champion (2011), and Turkish League Champion (2012).
4-time WNBA All-Star, 7-Time WNBA Assist Leader, and named to the 2016 WNBA Top 20 players of all time.
2-time Kodak All-American (1997, 1998) and the Wade Trophy Winner (1998)
RUTH RILEY (U.S. Player)
2004 - Olympic Gold Medalist
2-time WNBA Champion with the Detroit Shock (2003, 2006) and the 2003 WNBA Finals MVP.
2001 - Naismith Player of the Year guiding Notre Dame to their first NCAA Division I National Championship.
CAROLYN BUSH RODDY (Veteran Player)
2-time NJCAA All-American at Hiwassee Junior College.
Led Wayland Baptist Flying Queens to two AAU National Championships, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding both years.
1975 - Texas Panhandle Player of the Year.
VALERIE STILL (U.S. Player)
University of Kentucky's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, guiding them to the 1982 SEC Regular Season and Tournament Championships.
1982 & 1983 - Kodak/WCBA All-American at University of Kentucky, and led the Columbus Quest to back-to-back (1997- 1998) ABL Championships.
First female to have her jersey retired at University of Kentucky, in any sport, and inducted into the charter class of the University of Kentucky's Hall of Fame.
ASSOCIATION for INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS for WOMEN (AIAW) (Trailblazers)
Founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and was one of the most key contributors to the significant advancements of women's athletics at the collegiate level.
The AIAW started with 280 member schools and at its peak had almost 1,000 member schools.
The annual AIAW women's basketball tournament received great publicity, and the 1973 tournament showed that women's sports could be financially successful with the tournament earning over $4,500 in profits. Some teams played before sellout crowds on campus, and New York's Madison Square Garden also featured match ups between the top teams of the AIAW era.