By TAMARA HEBERT POWELL Reporter contributor
The game of basketball is frequently littered with play calls like the words rebound, recover, defense rebound, and drive among many others. One African American leading change through resilience is Elizabeth “Liz” Galloway McQuitter.
Liz became a trailblazer in the world of basketball, becoming one of the first black women athletes from the Rockdale integrated schools to attend college on an athletic scholarship, a benefit of Title IX legislation. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity) discrimination in any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Liz was born in Rockdale. She says that she was a product of segregation, integration and then assimilation. Living “across the tracks,” Liz reflects that she had a strong loving family and close relationships with her extended family and community members. Church was a central fixture with strong ties in the black community. Many of the Rockdale citizens in and around Third Street, the New Hope and Springfield Baptist churches and Aycock school provided support to Liz and other children in the community.
Liz attended first the segregated Aycock school for grades first through fifth. Aycock High School was famous for stellar athletic teams and high achievement with their teams winning state in basketball, football, track, field and baseball. Liz grew up hearing about the achievements of the athletes at Aycock. Because of segregation, the Aycock teams could not part ic ipate in UIL competitions and were instead governed by the Prairie View Interscholast ic League (PVIL). By the time Liz went to sixth grade in the old Rockdale Jr. High, schools were fully integrated. According to Liz, the black teachers at Aycock, and her parents, had poured confidence and knowledge into the students. They were academically equipped for the new environment. As for sports, the neighborhood was her training ground. Her mother bought them sports equipment every Christmas and ultimately would be the one to unknowingly “change the course” of her life. One summer she bought them a basketball and a goal. They nailed it to a pole and played all summer. It was the beginning of her love affair with basketball.
In sixth grade Liz was as tall as most of the boys and was used to competing against them. Girls’ basketball was big in the state of Texas and very popular in Rockdale. She started playing in the seventh grade and by eighth grade had found her niche. Her junior high coach, Wanda Mercer, pulled her aside one day and told her that she needed to be more aggressive. That advice stayed with Liz throughout her career.
In high school, Liz made the varsity team at the end of her freshman year. She played on two state-qualifying teams—one under Coach Ernie Lawrence and the other under Coach John Shoemake. Her team finished runner- up in her junior year and Liz was named All-State. This was 1972, the year of Title IX. None of the players knew what the legislation would mean for the future of women’s basketball or their own personal journey in sports.
After high school Liz left Rockdale to play for Hall of Fame Coach Fran Garmon and the Temple Junior College Leopardettes. It was here that Liz was educated on what the Title IX would mean for female student athletes. Her team went on to win the first NJCAA National Championship and beat top fouryear colleges like UT, Baylor, UCLA and SFA, and eventually the AAU National Champion John F. Kennedy. These large colleges were just beginning to form the teams that Title IX afforded.
After Temple, Liz and her friend, Debra Waddy, left to play for Dan Ayala at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. There, they became the first female basketball players to receive athletic scholarships. Coach Ayala helped Liz to hone her defensive skills and led to her reputation as the best defender in the Women’s Basketball League (WBL). Liz went on to grad school and was contacted later to go to Chicago to try out for the Women’s Basketball League as a free agent. Liz and Debra made the Chicago Hustle team and another friend, Janice Fincher, went on to play for the Milwaukee Does. Others from her UNLV team were also drafted to WBL teams.
This meant Liz and her teammates would start and play in the first women’s professional basketball game in the United States. They both finished with “double-doubles” with Waddy leading all scorers and rebounders—30 points, 12 rebounds—while Liz had 10 points and 10 rebounds. She was described as a crafty scorer in the half court and a transitional player on offense, but it would be on the defensive end of the floor where she established her place in the WBL.
After a particularly competitive game with the Iowa Cornets, Liz was given the moniker “the Bandit” for her ability to steal the ball. She played for two seasons with the Hustle for Coach Doug Bruno, Owner Sherwin Fischer, President John Geraty and GM Chuck Shriver. Together they made Chicago one of the most successful teams in the league. The Hustle would fill the stands at DePaul’s Alumni Hall and Shriver garnered a television contract with WGN that broadcast the games nationally. It was a game-changer and made them as popular as their male professional counterparts in Chicago. She was later traded from the Hustle and chose not to continue to play. Liz went on to work for former president John Geraty until she entered the coaching ranks. With a 32-year coaching career, Liz left her mark on the profession and players over the next four decades. This is perhaps the group’s greatest impact. The lessons she learned from all of her teachers, coaches and the Rockdale community gave her the keys to success.
It was at their 25th year anniversary celebration in Chicago that the retired players realized their WBL legacy was not common knowledge. Liz always taught their history to her players and colleagues but overall, the role of women in the WBL as the foundation for the formation of the WNBA was largely unknown.
After induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame (WBHOF) in 2018, Liz and her teammates were inspired to tell the full history of the WBL. She recruited 11 of her WBL former teammates and opponents and formed Legends of the Ball Inc. Today, their mission is to promote the historic and social relevance of the WBL and tell the story of the pioneers of Title IX, the AIAW, the Olympics, the WBL and how this contribution to basketball continues to inspire decades of young adults. It is a rich history of resilience, rebounding, recovering, reflecting and drive that formed the foundation on which women’s sports stand today.
In recent years, L iz brought her coaching talents, lessons of discipline, perseverance and stamina to the Rockdale coaching ranks. She shared her love for basketball, the Rockdale community and her students until her retirement. The resilient spirit that took her far from the Milam County Lines around the world, still leads her to inspire students today. Currently, as the founder of Legends of the Ball, Liz has done “Ted Talks” and speaking engagements in multiple states to educate about the WBL, the power of the game and the promise of the future that is based on the work that these trailblazers in the world of women’s basketball began long ago.
McQuitter
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