Kamie Ethridge

Kamie Ethridge

Northern Colorado Bears
Position	Head coach
League	Big Sky Conference
Personal information
Born	(1964-04-21) April 21, 1964 Hereford, Texas
Nationality	American
Listed height	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Listed weight	122 lb (55 kg)
Career information
High school	Monterey (Lubbock, Texas)
College	Texas (1982–1986)
Position	Point guard
Coaching career	1990–present
Career history
As coach:
1990–1991	Northern Illinois (assistant)
1991–1996	Vanderbilt (assistant)
1996–2014	Kansas State (assoc. HC)
2014–present	Northern Colorado
Career highlights and awards
As player: NCAA champion (1986) Wade Trophy (1986) Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (1986) Honda-Broderick Cup (1986) 2× All-American – WBCA (1985–1986)
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
Medals Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games 1988 Seoul Team competition FIBA World Championship 1986 Moscow Team competition World University Games 1985 Kobe Team Competition Pan American Games 1987 Indianapolis Team competition

Kamie Ethridge (born April 21, 1964) is a former American basketball player and current basketball coach. She was an All-American point guard at the University of Texas at Austin and won a Gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics. She is considered one of the best women's basketball players in history and was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. Ethridge is currently the head coach at University of Northern Colorado.^[1]

High school

Born in Hereford, Texas, Ethridge played guard for Monterey High School, in Lubbock, Texas. She led her team to a state championship (5A) in 1981.^[2]

College

Ethridge attended the University of Texas, where she played for Hall of Fame coach Jody Conradt. The Lady Longhorns were one of the more powerful teams in the country at the time Ethridge joined the team, and she would help strengthen that position. Ethridge arrived at Texas in 1982. Her first two years, the team earned a two seed at the 1983 and the 1984 NCAA Basketball Tournament. In 1984, the team was strong enough to earn the number one ranking in the regular season final AP poll.^[3] The team suffered knee injuries to five key players in 1984, including injuries to center Annette Smith so severe she was in rehabilitation for well over a year.^[4] In 1985, the team would also end the season ranked number one in the poll.^[5] That year, the team went 28–3 in the regular season, and looked forward to a Final Four held at their own arena, the Erwin Center. The Lady Longhorns were stunned by a buzzer beating shot by Western Kentucky, and lost 92–90 in the Mideast Regional semifinals.^[4]

Despite earning lofty rankings, the team entered the 1985–86 season without having won a National Championship. Ethridge was one of six seniors, including Fran Harris, who were in their last year of college ball with one last chance for a championship. Ethridge was considered very competitive—she once competed in a triathlon, riding the nine mile bicycle leg with a flat tire for the last three miles.^[4] The team was again ranked very high, prompting Sports Illustrated to refer to their arena as "the best little scorehouse in Texas".^[4]

That year, the team entered the tournament undefeated, and won all their tournament games, finishing the season as the first undefeated NCAA Division I women's basketball team (34–0), and National champions.^[2] Ethridge was the 1986 winner of the Honda award for basketball^[6] and the overall Honda-Broderick Cup winner for all sports.^[7] She was also the winner of the Wade Trophy, reflecting leadership and character in addition to athletic ability.^[2][8] Etheridge was the 1986 recipient of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith award, which is presented by the WBCA annually to "the nation's most outstanding NCAA Division I female basketball player who stands 5'8" tall or under".^[9] While at Texas, she had 776 assists, setting a school record.^[2]

USA Basketball

Ethridge played for the USA World University Games team in Kobe, Japan in 1985. The team brought home a silver medal, after falling to the USSR. The team trailed by 18 points at one time, mounted a come-back attempt but fell short, losing 87–81.^[10] The following year, Ethridge played for the USA team at the World Championships, in Moscow. This time, the USA team would meet the USSR in the title game and emerge victorious, winning the gold medal with a score of 108–88.^[11]

Ethridge was a member of the gold medal winning USA team competing in the Pan American games held in Indianapolis, Indiana during August 1987, although she saw limited action due to a knee injury sustained in the first game.^[12] Ethridge finished her USA basketball playing career with a gold medal win in the 1988 Olympics held in Seoul, Korea^[13]

Coaching

After a brief stint playing professionally in Italy, Ethridge accepted an assistant coaching position with Northern Illinois University in 1990.^[2] She then moved on to Vanderbilt, and was part of the coaching staff under Jim Foster to help the team to a 1993 Final Four appearance. She then moved on to Kansas State, first as an assistant, then as associate head coach, where she helped the team become competitive.^[2]

Awards and honors

• 1986—Winner of the Honda award for basketball^[6]
• 1986—The Honda-Broderick Cup winner for all sports.^[7]
• 1986—The Wade Trophy
• 2000—University of Texas Women's Athletic Hall of Honor^[2]
• 2002—Women's Basketball Hall of Fame^[14]

Notes

References

• David L. Porter, ed. (2005). Basketball: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-30952-6. 

External links

• Northern Colorado athletic site bio
• Women's Basketball Hall of Fame profile