THE GREATER LANSING AREA SPORTS HALL
OF FAME
INDUCTION CEREMONY
Gina Mazzolini
July 29, 2021
By Chuck Krafft
Gina
Mazzolini was a great athlete in two different sports (basketball and
volleyball) for both St. Johns High School and Central Michigan
University. She led her Central Michigan
Chippewas to their first state title with a record of 24-9 in 1976-77.
She scored 988 points in her career which is the tenth leading total in CMU
women’s basketball history. She is also
in the top ten in scoring average, rebounds and rebounding average. In 1974, she was the first ever St. Johns
female athlete of the year.
She opened
her acceptance speech by thanking the high school and college coaches who
came. She let us know of all the hurdles
women had to climb when girls’ sports were starting. There were problems getting equipment, gym
time and almost everything else.
She appreciated
the help and mentoring she received from her parents, both of who were athletic. Her mother taught her the underhand free
throw shot that is generally the most accurate way of shooting them (even if
modern players won’t do it because it doesn’t look “cool.”)
Her parents
emphasized character as she grew up. As
she had to do much of her training at home, there were many broken things,
etc. She said that eight siblings and
one bathroom taught her a lot about teamwork and organization.
Sports
taught her confidence, problem solving and teamwork. She treasured her relationships with her
teammates. The lessons she learned playing
sports at St. Johns and Central Michigan helped her to learn how to work hard
and compete in life.
For those
who wish to read about the entire induction ceremony, here is a link.
https://lansingcivicevents.blogspot.com/2021/07/2021-greater-lansing-sports-hall-of.html
No comments:
Post a Comment