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hockey (1980), Candy Finn in field hockey (1981) and lacrosse (1981, '82) and Jana Angelakis in fencing (1982). Penn State women also won seven na- tional AIAW team championships – field hockey (1980, '81), fencing (1980, '81, '83) and gymnastics (1978, '80) – and finished second 13 times. Two other teams won national titles sanctioned by other groups that were affiliated with the AIAW: lacrosse (USWLA 1978, '79, '80) and bowling (Pabst Blue Ribbon 1973, '79). Another important decision early in Scannell's tenure as dean of the College of Health, Physical Education and Recre- ation was to appoint Durant and Adams to two newly created positions in 1973. Durant was named assistant athletic di- rector for women's sports, and Adams was made the director of the Student Ath- lete Advisory Center. Those moves ac- knowledged the importance of both women and their specific expertise. They served in those positions until retirement, Adams in 1987 and Durant in 1989. Prodded by Title IX and the success of the AIAW in orchestrating women's in- tercollegiate competition, the NCAA adopted another resolution in 1975 "calling for the orderly development of women's intercollegiate athletics." Yet there were factions on both sides that opposed the merger of the AIAW with the NCAA. "Women did not want to pattern them- selves after the men because they didn't like what had happened, particularly the abuse in scholarships," Durant said. "We wanted to maintain the integrity of our program and the benefits of competition but not lose sight of our main goal of ed- ucation. "They weren't treating us like equals, either, particularly in leadership roles. We also didn't like the NCAA's positions on recruitment, financial aid and other things. And their plans were not clear about the championship structure and the number of championships. We had discussed our objections with our Penn State adminis- trators like Dean McCoy, Dean Scannell and Ed Czekaj and they always backed us." Adams said Scannell was "deeply involved in the formation of Title IX and went to Washington often to testify. One thing that should come through loud and clear is that women at Penn State have always had the support of our administration." Their support for Penn State's women frequently drew university administrators into conflicts with their contemporaries in the NCAA leadership. Perhaps the most crucial confrontation occurred in the fall of 1980 when the NCAA proposed com- petition for women in Divisions II and III with the stipulation that the AIAW dissolve. Durant wrote a memo to Penn State president John Oswald explaining why the proposal should be defeated. In the memo, Durant stated that the plan "does not provide for equal representation of women in leadership roles, does not pro- vide for compromise of the main differ- ences in the NCAA and AIAW positions re: recruitment, transfer rule, financial aid and declaration of division by sport rather than program. Also, the champi- onship structure and number of champi- onships to be offered is not clear." At its next annual meeting in January 1981, the NCAA finally reached a com- promise, adopting "a governance plan to include women athletic programs and services within the NCAA structure." The NCAA established 19 women's champi- onships in different divisions and created a new NCAA seal depicting both a male and a female athlete. The AIAW tried to stop the NCAA, but a federal judge rejected its request. Two years later, the AIAW went out of business. "There is no way women's sports would be where [they are] today if the NCAA had not taken over," said Magnusson, who retired in 1986. "When they took over, they had all the groundwork for television. We couldn't have done it as fast because we didn't have the money. I certainly can- not fault what the NCAA has done from '82 on. They've involved a fair number of women administrators and they have run good tournaments. "But before the NCAA, Penn State had lot of things going for us in philosophy, personnel and operations and especially in our cooperative relationship between the men's and the women's programs. It has been there forever." ■ PSU mourns key administrator Ellen Perry, a Penn State coach and administrator for nearly four decades and one of the key figures in the devel- opment of women's athletics at the university, died March 4 in State Col- lege. She was 72. Perry was a member of the Penn State staff from 1966 until her retire- ment on June 30, 2002. She was the Nittany Lions' first women's swim- ming and diving head coach, and from 1989 until her retirement, she served as associate athletic di- rector and senior woman administrator. "Ellen Perry was one of the primary forces in mak- ing Penn State an early leader among national universities in providing opportunities for women in athletics on the intercol- legiate, intramural and club levels," ath- letic director Dave Joyner said. "Ellen made a meaningful difference in the lives of Penn State students and staff and members of the State College and intercollegiate athletics communities." Perry, a native of Reading, Mass., played a significant role in helping the university's women's programs win 14 national championships in six sports, 17 Big Ten regular-season champi- onships and nine Big Ten tournament titles during her tenure. Perry guided the women's swimming and diving program from 1970-81 and posted a winning percentage of .790 in 124 dual meets. In 1990, the Eastern Women's Swimming League named its team championship trophy the Ellen Perry Cup for her many contributions to the sport. After her retirement, Perry contin- ued to attend Penn State sports events and was a fixture at Lady Lion basket- ball games. "She was a remarkable woman with incredible vision," coach Coquese Washington said. "Her sup- port over the years has helped Lady Lion basketball exist as one of the na- tion's elite, and I will miss seeing her after our games with her warm smile and encouraging words." ELLEN PERRY

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