The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was a college athletics organization in the United States, founded in 1971 to govern women's college competitions in the country and to administer national championships. It evolved out of the "Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women" (CIAW), founded in 1967. The association was one of the biggest advancements for women's athletics on the collegiate level. Throughout the 1970s, the AIAW grew rapidly in membership and influence, in parallel with the national growth of women's sports following the enactment of Title IX.
The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics and to administer national championships. During its existence, the AIAW and its predecessor, the Division for Girls' and Women's Sports (DGWS), recognized via these championships the teams and individuals who excelled at the highest level of women's collegiate competition.
The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot is the Nittany Lion. The intercollegiate athletics logo was commissioned in 1983.
Lusia Mae Harris was an American professional basketball player. Harris is considered to be one of the pioneers of women's basketball. She played for Delta State University and won three consecutive Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) National Championships, the predecessors to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championships, from 1975 to 1977. In international level, she represented the United States' national team and won the silver medal in the 1976 Olympic Games, the first women's basketball tournament in the Olympic Games. She played professional basketball with the Houston Angels of the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL) and was the first and only woman ever officially drafted by the National Basketball Association (NBA). For her achievements, Harris was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
Theresa Marie Shank Grentz is an American college basketball coach. Her coaching career spanned five decades, with over 680 career wins, multiple national and conference coaching awards, and a national championship. She is a member of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Cathy Rush is a former basketball coach at Immaculata from 1972 to 1977. She led Immaculata to three consecutive AIAW national titles from 1972–1974. She led the Mighty Macs to six consecutive final four appearances in her six seasons with the school, attaining a 149–15 record. Rush was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on April 7, 2008. She had also been inducted to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.
The Kansas State Wildcats women's basketball program is the intercollegiate basketball program of the Kansas State Wildcats. The program is classified in the NCAA Division I, and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference.
The AIAW women's basketball tournament was a national tournament for women's collegiate basketball teams in the United States, held annually from 1972 to 1982. The winners of the AIAW tournaments from 1972 to 1981 are recognized as the national champions for those years.
The Old Dominion Monarchs women’s basketball team represents Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. The team currently competes in the NCAA Division I as a member of the Sun Belt Conference.
The 1982 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship was held on March 21–28, 1982. Sixteen teams participated, and Rutgers University was crowned champion of the tournament. The host site for the Final Four was The Palestra on the University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia.
The 1981 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship was held on March 18–29, 1981. Twenty-four teams were invited, with eight teams receiving first round byes. First round games were played at on-campus locations. Louisiana Tech University was crowned national champion at the conclusion of the tournament. Louisiana Tech finished undefeated (34–0), becoming the third undefeated national champion.
The 1980 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship was held on March 12–23, 1980. Twenty-four teams were invited, with eight teams receiving first round byes. First round games were played at on-campus locations. Old Dominion University was crowned national champion at the conclusion of the tournament, for the second straight season. The championship game was broadcast live on NBC.
The 1979 AIAW National Large College Basketball Championship was held on March 16–25, 1979. Sixteen teams were invited, and Old Dominion University was crowned national champion at the conclusion of the tournament.
The 1978 AIAW National Large College Basketball Championship was held on March 17–25, 1978. Sixteen teams were invited, and UCLA Bruins were crowned national champions.
The 1977 AIAW women's basketball tournament was held on March 23–26, 1977. The host site was the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Sixteen teams participated, and Delta State University was crowned national champion at the conclusion of the tournament for the third straight season.
The 1975 AIAW women's basketball tournament was held from March 19 to 22, 1975, at Madison College in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Sixteen teams participated and Delta State University, coached by Hall of Famer Margaret Wade, was crowned national champion. It finished the season undefeated (28–0), becoming the second undefeated national champion.
The 1974 AIAW women's basketball tournament was held on March 20–23, 1974. The host site was Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas.
The 1973 AIAW women's basketball tournament was held on March 22–25, 1973. The host site was Queens College in Flushing, New York. Sixteen teams participated, and Immaculata College, now known as Immaculata University, was crowned national champion at the conclusion of the tournament, for the second straight year.
The 1972 AIAW women's basketball tournament was held on March 16–19, 1972. The host site was Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois.
