ECU Mourns The Passing Of Anne Donovan
June 14, 2018 | General
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- East Carolina University and the entire Pirate Athletics community mourns the loss of Anne Donovan, who passed away Wednesday at the age of 56.
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Donovan, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995, spent three seasons (1995-98) as head women's basketball coach at ECU and led the Pirates to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championship game in 1997 as the No. 6 seed. Justine Allpress earned Second-Team All-CAA and All-CAA Academic Team honors under her tutelage.
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"The tremendous impact Anne Donovan made, not only on ECU, but the entire game of basketball is unprecedented," ECU Head Women's Basketball Coach Heather Macy said. "While we have lost a legend, we are consoled by the lasting memories and a legacy that will certainly continue to inspire our program and the countless of individuals she influenced."
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Donovan was a four-year letterwinner at Old Dominion and teamed with fellow Hall of Fame inductee Nancy Lieberman to lead the Monarchs to the AIAW National Championship in 1980 before winning Olympic gold in 1984 and 1988. After she concluded her playing career, she returned as an assistant coach at ODU before leading ECU's program.
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She spent 12 seasons coaching in the WNBA, guiding the Seattle Storm to the league championship in 2004. Four years later, she was named head coach of the USA Women's Basketball Team which captured the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.
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Donovan averaged 20.0 points and 14.5 rebounds per game during her four years at Old Dominion and was the recipient of the 1983 Naismith Trophy as National Player-of-the-Year. She was a member of the inaugural class of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015. She was also elected to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 1994.
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Donovan, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995, spent three seasons (1995-98) as head women's basketball coach at ECU and led the Pirates to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championship game in 1997 as the No. 6 seed. Justine Allpress earned Second-Team All-CAA and All-CAA Academic Team honors under her tutelage.
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"The tremendous impact Anne Donovan made, not only on ECU, but the entire game of basketball is unprecedented," ECU Head Women's Basketball Coach Heather Macy said. "While we have lost a legend, we are consoled by the lasting memories and a legacy that will certainly continue to inspire our program and the countless of individuals she influenced."
Â
Donovan was a four-year letterwinner at Old Dominion and teamed with fellow Hall of Fame inductee Nancy Lieberman to lead the Monarchs to the AIAW National Championship in 1980 before winning Olympic gold in 1984 and 1988. After she concluded her playing career, she returned as an assistant coach at ODU before leading ECU's program.
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She spent 12 seasons coaching in the WNBA, guiding the Seattle Storm to the league championship in 2004. Four years later, she was named head coach of the USA Women's Basketball Team which captured the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.
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Donovan averaged 20.0 points and 14.5 rebounds per game during her four years at Old Dominion and was the recipient of the 1983 Naismith Trophy as National Player-of-the-Year. She was a member of the inaugural class of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015. She was also elected to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 1994.
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