The Long Beach Stingrays was a women's professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

team. It existed for only the 1997–98 season, and was a member of the American Basketball League (ABL). The Stingrays played most of their home games at the

Walter Pyramid The Walter Pyramid, formerly known as The Long Beach Pyramid, is a 4,000-seat, indoor multi-purpose arena on the campus of Long Beach State University in Long Beach, California. History The Walter Pyramid was officially opened on November 30, 19 ...

on the campus of California State University, Long Beach; however, one home game was played at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (now the

Honda Center The Honda Center (formerly known as the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim) is an indoor arena located in Anaheim, California. The arena is home to the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League. Originally named the Anaheim Arena during construction ...

). Their

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

was Maura McHugh. The Stingrays' biggest star player was their

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Yolanda Griffith Yolanda Evette Griffith (born March 1, 1970) is an American professional basketball hall of fame player who played in both the ABL and WNBA. A former WNBA MVP, she is considered one of the greatest rebounders and defensive players in the history ...

. Other notable Stingrays included Beverly Williams, Michelle M. Marciniak, and the former Olympic athlete

Venus Lacy Venus Lacy (some sources give her name as Venus Lacey, born February 9, 1967) is an American former star basketball player, at the high school, college, Olympic and professional levels. A wide-bodied, muscular center, at her best Lacy was an in ...

. In what turned out to be the team's only season, the Stingrays made it all the way to the ABL's championship round. They beat the defending champion Columbus Quest in the first two games (both in Long Beach) but lost the final three games in Columbus, and with that, the series. Despite their strong first season, the Stingrays were viewed largely with indifference by area fans. They had the league's worst attendance; for most of the season, they attracted crowds in the hundreds. Citing anemic season ticket sales and weak corporate sponsorship, league officials shuttered the Stingrays in August 1998. The rest of the league followed in December. Griffith, like most of the ABL's star players, eventually joined the competing

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the Natio ...

(WNBA) Griffith went on to a long career in the WNBA, most notably for the

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mona ...

. As for McHugh, she has coached various professional and college teams.

Team record

Regular season

Post-season

;ABL Playoffs First-Round ;ABL Semifinals ;ABL Championship Series

League honors

* ABL Defensive Player of the Year, 1997–98 * All-ABL First Team, 1997–98

References

* {{cite web, title=Articles about Long Beach Stingrays Basketball Team, url=http://articles.latimes.com/keyword/long-beach-stingrays-basketball-team, work=Los Angeles Times, access-date=26 December 2015, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151202192502/http://articles.latimes.com/keyword/long-beach-stingrays-basketball-team, archive-date=2015-12-02, date=May 6, 1998 Article headline, author, date, and lead paragraph, in reverse chronological order, each linked to page of the article. American Basketball League (1996–1998) teams Defunct basketball teams in the United States Basketball teams established in 1997 Basketball teams disestablished in 1998 Sports in Long Beach, California Women's sports in California ca:American Basketball League III