The Final Four teams included two teams (South Carolina and UCLA) coached by women, and two by men (UConn and Texas). While all-women-coached finals are not rare, Auriemma’s teams have dominated so often, with 12 national titles, that it’s no given the final every year will include two women head coaches.
“Give Coach Auriemma and coach Vic Schaefer their kudos in what they have done to set bars of excellence in the game,” UCLA coach Cori Close said Saturday.
“That being said, I think both Dawn (Staley) and I feel a sense of pride that we are able to continue to represent women that can coach at the highest levels, to promote our game. I think both Dawn and I really see this as something bigger than ourselves. That’s an honor. That’s an honor to be a part of that.
“Part of legacy, I don’t want to speak for her, but I do think she feels the same way, we really want to have made an impact on growing the game for a long time to come, to inspire that women can stay in this game, that we don’t lose women coaches. We need to promote more women at the grassroots levels to be coaching, getting involved in new sports. There’s just a lot of things that go into that.
“I think there’s something to be said that if you can see it, you think you can achieve it, right? I think it’s an honor to be a small part of that.”
