Joan Cronan, the former women’s athletic director at Tennessee, and Ticha Penicheiro, a four-time WNBA player, are among the twelve finalists for induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. The announcement was made on Thursday. The official class for the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame will be released on February 4, 2019, with the induction ceremony scheduled for June 8, 2019.
The other finalists include Beth Bass, former CEO of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association; Debbie Brock, former guard at Delta State; Nora Lynn Finch, inaugural NCAA Division I women’s basketball committee chair; Lucille Kyvallos, former coach; WNBA center and former Notre Dame player Ruth Riley; Carolyn Busch Roddy, former star of Wayland Baptist Flying Queens; former Western Kentucky coach Paul Sanderford; Bob Schneider, former Division II college coach and high school coach; Valerie Still, former Kentucky star; and Amy Tucker, longtime assistant coach at Stanford.
During her 29-year tenure as women’s athletic director at Tennessee, Cronan oversaw eight national championship seasons for the Lady Volunteers under coach Pat Summitt. Brock won the AIAW National Championship three times from 1975 to 1977. Riley, a two-time WNBA champion and Olympic gold medalist, led Notre Dame to a national title in 2001.
Penicheiro, who started at Old Dominion, led the WNBA in assists for seven seasons. Carolyn Busch Roddy led the Wayland Baptist Flying Queens to two AAU National Championship appearances. She still holds the records for career scoring and rebounding at Kentucky.
Amy Tucker was instrumental in nearly 900 wins during her 32 seasons as an assistant, head coach, and associate head coach at Stanford. Paul Sanderford guided Western Kentucky to three Final Four appearances and 12 NCAA Tournaments during his coaching tenure.
