Women's College Basketball: Immaculata Hall of Fame ceremony to honor 1970s champions, others

It was a year ago this month when the long-awaited movie The Mighty Macs, about Immaculata's first national women's basketball championship team, made its way to theater screens.

On Saturday, Immaculata is bringing back the original players from that squad, and others, for another special event when the school launches its Athletic Hall of Fame with the inaugural class.

Immaculata will honor all three national championship squads (1972-74), Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Cathy Rush, and also focus on three players in the group who became all-Americans: Marianne Crawford Stanley, Theresa Shank Grentz, and Mary Scharf - who eventually became one of Rush's successors in guiding the Mighty Macs.

"I'm not really sure how the [Hall of Fame] process started, but it should be a great event," said Grentz, who became a vice president at her alma mater, but left to start her own company, Grentz Elite Coaching.

In addition, Grentz will be a presenter Nov. 15 at the New York Athletic Club when Rush becomes one of four recipients of the annual Lapchick Character Award, named for St. John's and NBA New York Knicks coach Joe Lapchick.

Rush, who is currently in Ventnor, N.J., said she wouldn't be able to attend the Immaculata event because of a prior family commitment.

"I know the PR person of Immaculata had been at Texas Western when they made the movie [Glory Road] about the men's [1966 national championship] team. He has a good vision, and I think he told the school they need to have a hall of fame at Immaculata," Rush said.

Also to be honored is Sister Marita David Kirsch, IHM, who played on Immaculata's unofficial city champion squad in 1945-46 that broke Temple's 31-game win streak,

Stanley became a coach of three national champions at Old Dominion. She is currently between jobs in the United States after the WNBA Washington Mystics recently fired coach/GM Trudi Lacey, under whom Stanley was an assistant, but has been coaching in Russia in the winter.

Honoree Judy Marra Martelli, the wife of St. Joseph's men's coach Phil Martelli, is expected to attend.

Others on the list of honorees, though it is not certain if they will attend, include former Penn State coach Rene Muth Portland and Tinah Krah, who is on the executive staff at NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis.

Saturday's induction ceremony will take place beginning at 5:30 p.m. in Immaculata's Great Hall. Tickets are $50 per person or $500 per table of ten. Call 610-647-4400, ext. 3874.