Sue Gunter

In the early days of women’s basketball – the days before national tournaments, television contracts, and sellout crowds – Sue Gunter began laying the foundation for the future of women’s athletics. As a player at Nashville Business College, Gunter earned All-America honors in 1960 while also playing two years on the United States National Team. In 1962, she began her coaching career at Middle Tennessee State and in 1964, became head coach at Stephen F. Austin, leading the Ladyjacks to 266 victories in 16 seasons. Gunter was rewarded for her dedication to women’s basketball when she was named an assistant on the 1976 US Olympic team that won the silver medal in Montreal. In 1982, she began a 22-year stint at LSU where she won 442 games and guided the Lady Tigers to the program’s first NCAA Final Four in 2004. The 1983 National Coach of the Year also led LSU to four NCAA Elite Eight appearances, two Southeastern Conference titles, and the 1985 Women's NIT title.