Thursday, March 17, 2005

Pat Summitt milestone victories

March 29, 1975: Jan. 10, 1975: Pat Head, at age 22, records her first collegiate victory, beating Middle Tennessee State 69-32 in UT's Alumni Gym. Fifty-three spectators were on hand to witness the victory.

March 29, 1987: The Lady Vols win their first NCAA title with a 67-44 victory over Louisiana Tech in Austin, Texas.

April 2, 1989: The Lady Vols return to Tacoma, Wash., the scene of their national semifinal loss to Louisiana Tech the previous season, and win the program's second national championship with a 76-60 victory over Auburn in the championship game.

April 2, 1991: The Lady Vols win their third title with a 70-67 victory over Virginia in New Orleans. It was the first overtime championship in NCAA history.

March 31, 1996: The Lady Vols beat Georgia 83-65 in Charlotte, N.C., to win their fourth national championship and begin the greatest three-year run in program history. In defeat, Georgia coach Andy Landers said, "Tennessee played the way Tennessee plays.''

March 30, 1997: Tennessee finishes a 10-loss season with the ultimate victory, upsetting Old Dominion 68-59 in Cincinnati for its fifth national championship. "Fifth in the SEC and No. 1 in the country - doesn't that just sum up what this team just accomplished,'' Summitt said.

March 29, 1998: The Lady Vols make NCAA women's basketball history with a 93-75 victory over Louisiana Tech in Kansas City, becoming the first team to finish 39-0 and win a third consecutive national championship. UT was at its relentless best in the championship game, so relentless that a weary Holdsclaw walked back to the locker room saying, "I'm going to bed.''

Feb. 1, 2001: With 24,056 in attendance at Thompson-Boling Arena, the Lady Vols beat Connecticut for victory No. 750.

Feb. 7, 2002: A 93-65 rout of Arkansas represents Summitt's 1000 th game as a head coach, including collegiate and international competition.

Feb. 21, 2002: The Lady Vols clinch an unprecedented fifth consecutive SEC regular-season championship with an 86-69 victory at Ole Miss.

March 17, 2002: Tennessee eliminates defending national champion Notre Dame, 89-50, to vault Summitt into a tie on the all-time tournament victory list with Bobby Knight.

March 25, 2002: Tennessee beats Vanderbilt 69-63 in the Midwest Regional championship to advance to the Final Four in San Antonio for the 13th time in team history, moving Summitt past coaching legend John Wooden to the top of the board for most Final Four appearances for the men's and women's games.

Feb. 27, 2003: A 91-71 victory over Vanderbilt on Senior Night clinches Tennessee's sixth consecutive SEC regular-season championship.

Feb. 22, 2004: Tennessee survives Armintie Price's 32-point performance to clinch their SEC regular-season championship No. 7 in a row with a 85-69 victory at Ole Miss.

March 6, 2005: Summitt passes Kentucky coach legend Adolph Rupp into second place on the NCAA Division I career coaching victories list with No. 877, a 76-73 nail-biter against Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament semifinals in Greenville, S.C.

March 7, 2005: The Lady Vols push Summitt to within one win of Dean Smith's career victories mark with a dramatic 67-65 upset victory over No. 1 LSU in the SEC tournament championship game in Greenville, S.C. The Lady Vols rally for a four-point deficit in the final 1:33.

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