The Penn State Lady Lions basketball team represents

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

and plays its home games in the Bryce Jordan Center. In 2013, the Lady Lions became just the 12th program in NCAA Division I history to reach 850 wins. Penn State has won 8 regular season

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

titles and the first 2

tournament titles in 1995 and 1996. Prior to joining the

, the Lady Lions competed in the

Atlantic 10 The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located mostly on the East Coast and Midwest of the ...

conference. The Lady Lions have 25

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

tournament appearances as of 2014, the most in the

. The team's best post-season finish came in 2000 when the Lady Lions reached the Final Four before losing to eventual champion

UConn The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

. The Lady Lions captured the WNIT title in 1998 defeating Baylor 59–56 in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and Interstate 35, I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin, Texas, Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 popul ...

. Notable alumni include WBCA First Team All-Americans Suzie McConnell, Susan Robinson,

Helen Darling Helen Marie Darling (born August 29, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Early life Darling is the daughter of Patricia Smith and Donald Darling. She has ...

, and

Kelly Mazzante Kelly Anne Mazzante (born February 2, 1982) is an American retired professional women's basketball player who last played for the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA. After her collegiate career, she was the all-time leading scorer in Big Ten basketball hi ...

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

correspondent

Lisa Salters Alisia "Lisa" Salters (born March 6, 1966) is an American journalist and former college basketball player. She has been a reporter for ESPN and ESPN on ABC since 2000. Salters previously covered the O. J. Simpson murder case for American Broadc ...

is the shortest player in Lady Lions history at 5'-2".

Current coaching staff

Pink Zone at Penn State

Annually, the Lady Lions don pink jerseys in support of several organizations that fight

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

in what is now known as the "Pink Zone at Penn State" game. The Lady Lions were the first Division I team in the nation to wear pink jerseys, a growing trend in athletics. Then-head coach Rene Portland developed the idea in 2006 with money from the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

, and the first game (termed the "Think Pink" game) occurred in February 2007 against

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

. In 2012, the Pink Zone at Penn State raised a record $203,000 to distribute to its beneficiaries.

All-time season results

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Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. The A-10's member schools are located most ...

, - style="background:#ffd;" , colspan="8" style="text-align:center;", Independent , - style="background:#ffd;" , colspan="8" style="text-align:center;",

* The Lady Lions finished 19–11 in 2004–05, but three wins were credited to assistant head coach Annie Troyan. Source:

Postseason results

NCAA Division I

AIAW Division I

The Nittany Lions made one appearance in the AIAW National Division I basketball tournament, with a combined record of 0–2.

Awards and honors

Atlantic 10 awards

Big Ten awards

National and regional awards

Wade Trophy The Wade Trophy is an award presented annually to the best upperclass women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I competition. It is named after three–time national champion Delta State ...

* 1992, Susan Robinson

Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award The Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award was an annual college basketball award in the United States intended to honor players who excelled on the court in spite of their height. The award, named in honor of James Naismith's daughter-in-law, was establi ...

* 1988, Suzie McConnell * 2000,

* 2013, Alex Bentley

CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year

* 2004,

Eastern College Athletic Conference The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) is a college athletic conference comprising schools that compete in 15 sports (13 men's and 13 women's). It has 220 member institutions in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, ranging in location from ...
Player of the Year

* 1991, Susan Robinson

WBCA Coach of the Year

* 1991, Rene Portland * 2004, Rene Portland

USBWA The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 with the urging of National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The U ...
Coach of the Year

* 1991, Rene Portland * 1992, Rene Portland

Black Coaches & Administrators The Black Coaches & Administrators (BCA) is a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is "to foster the growth and development of ethnic minorities at all levels of sports both nationally and internationally". It currently is focused on athl ...
Female Coach of the Year

* 2011, Coquese Washington * 2013, Coquese Washington

References

External links

* {{Authority control