Colorado University Athletics
Colorado Baketball Milestones
March 19, 1898-Miss Longon (of East Denver) organizes a team and is elected captain. The first girls' basketball game is played at the University and Denver East High School defeats the University, 21-9.
1899-Miss Pinger is elected captain and Colorado defeats Colorado Agricultural College, twice.
1900-Miss Elwell is elected captain and the University has an undefeated season (number of games unknown).
February 3, 1900-The University defeats Colorado Agricultural College, 30-2. Admission to the game is 25 cents and there is a dance given afterwards paid for by the money raised for admission.
March 14, 1902- University defeats Agricultural College, 47-8.
January 17, 1975-A 57-54 win over Weber State, in the season-opener in Boulder, gives the program its first win. It also marks Colorado's first varsity game and first as a member of the Intermountain Conference.
March 20, 1978-Maureen "Rene" Portland is named Colorado's third head women's basketball coach.
May 11, 1979-Corky O'Rourke (Most Valuable Player Award), Sue Horner (Senior and Leadership Award), Lizz Brugger (Coach's Award) and Kim Scheidt (Most Improved Player Award) are honored at the first University of Colorado women's sports banquet.
May 25, 1979-The Big Eight Conference voted to sponsor championship events for women in 10 sports on a one-year trial basis.
July 11, 1979-Rene Portland named coordinator of women's athletics at CU. November 16, 1979-The Buffs play their first game in the Coors Events/Conference Center, and christen the arena with a 112-48 win over in-state rival Colorado State.
December 16, 1980-After a 7-0 start on the season, Colorado is ranked in the Associated Press for the first time in the program's history. The Buffs are ranked 20th and celebrate with a 134-33 win over Fort Carson.
June 14, 1980-Sox Walseth, after a 20-year career with the CU men's team, is named Colorado's fourth women's basketball coach.
January 15, 1983-Colorado's first game as a member of the Big Eight Conference. The Buffs lose at Kansas State, 59-75. March 11, 1983-With four rebounds in the first half against Kansas State, Lisa Van Goor becomes the first Colorado basketball player, male or female, to grab 1,000 rebounds. She reached the milestone in only her third season.
March 15, 1983-After three seasons with the Lady Buffs and 20 seasons with the CU men's team, head coach Sox Walseth announces his retirement. Walseth compiled a career record of 338-266 from 1957-83. April 12, 1983-Ceal Barry was named Colorado's fifth head coach in program history.
February 23, 1985-Fifth-year senior Lisa Van Goor scores 19 points against Kansas State to become the first basketball player in Colorado history, male or female, to eclipse the 2,000-point career mark, passing Cliff Meely's 1,940 points. She also became the first CU player to score 2,000 points and grab 1,000 boards.
February 25, 1989-Colorado beats Kansas, 70-51, in Lawrence, to become the first Big Eight Conference team to register an undefeated (14-0) conference record.
March 28, 1989-A crowd of 11,199 fans pack the Coors Events/Conference Center to watch No. 9 Colorado play then-No. 16 UNLV in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. It is the largest crowd to watch a women's basketball game in Boulder.
November 24, 1992-Colorado is ranked in the preseason AP poll for the first time in the program's history. The Buffs enter the 1992-93 season as the nation's 25th-ranked team.
March 20, 1993-An 81-74 win over UC-Santa Barbara in the second round of the NCAA Tournament catapults the Buffs into the Sweet 16 for the first time in the program's history. Colorado would go on to beat defending national champion Stanford, 80-67, in the regional semifinal before falling to eventual national champion Texas Tech, 79-54, in the regional final.
April 16, 1993-After 19 seasons as the Lady Buffs, head coach Ceal Barry announces that the team will be referred to as the Buffaloes, dropping the moniker, Lady.
February 25, 1994-The Big 12 Conference is formed when Baylor, Texas A&M, Texas and Texas Tech merge with existing Big Eight Conference schools Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, to create one of the most formidable women's basketball conferences in the country.
February 26, 1995-Colorado escapes a last second shot and beats Kansas State, 74-71, in Manhattan, to become only the second team in Big Eight history to have an undefeated (14-0) league season.
March 13, 1995-Colorado is voted the second-ranked team in the country in the final Associated Press poll of the 1994-95 season. It is the highest ranking in the program's and Big Eight Conference's history.
March 23, 1995-In defeating George Washington, 77-61, Colorado won its 30th game of the season, a program record and its 25th-straight game, the longest winning streak in Colorado history in any sport.
March 31, 1995-Shelley Sheetz was named Colorado's first Kodak All- American. The announcement came from Minneapolis, Minn., sight of the 1995 Final Four.
November 14, 1995-Head coach Ceal Barry was named an assistant coach for the 1996 United States Women's Olympic Basketball Team. The appointment is her eighth and most prestigious USA Basketball assignment.
March 4, 1996-In defeating Kansas 75-47 in the title game of the Big Eight Tournament, Colorado wins the last Big Eight Conference women's basketball game in the league's 21-year existence (or 21 seasons of sponsoring women's basketball.)
November 18, 1996-Ceal Barry announces the signing of the 1997 recruiting class. The class is tabbed the nation's third-ranking recruiting class behind Tennessee and Georgia.
November 23, 1996-The program wins its 400th game, a 78-73 decision in the season opener at Brigham Young.
March 8, 1997-Colorado defeats Kansas State, 54-44, to win the inaugural Big 12 Conference Tournament title in Kansas City, Missouri's Municipal Auditorium.
November 17, 1997-Eisha Bohman, Britt Hartshorn, Mandy Nightingale, Linda Lappe and Jenny Roulier sign National Letters of Intent to attend Colorado. The class of 2002 is Barry's second-straight top-10 recruiting class.
February 25, 1998-With a 78-65 win over Missouri, Ceal Barry earns her 300th win at Colorado.
March 14, 1999-Shelley Garcia's collegiate career comes to a close as a member of the second winningest class in CU history (110-48). Ceal Barry coaches 400th game at Colorado.
November 26, 1999-Colorado defeats Wright State 76-49, earning head coach Ceal Barry her 400th career victory.
January 18, 2000-Ceal Barry coaches her 500th game at Colorado, becoming just the fourth person in CU history to coach that many games, meets or matches.
January 22, 2001-Buffs earn first national ranking since the 1997-98 season, checking in at No. 25 in the Associated Press Poll.
March 11, 2001-Colorado earns its ninth bid to the NCAA Tournament, first since 1997. They will face Siena in a first round game at Vanderbilt University.
November 9, 2001-Britt Hartshorn becomes the 16th 1,000 point scorer for Colorado and the first for CU since 1997 with four points against Oral Roberts. She would be joined later in that month by classmates Jenny Roulier (Nov. 11) and Mandy Nightingale (Nov. 23), making the trio the first in CU history to reach the 1,000 point mark not only in the same month, but also in the same season.
February 3, 2002-On the strength of a 40-foot three pointer by Mandy Nightingale, Colorado defeats No. 12 Texas Tech in Lubbock in overtime, giving CU its first-ever road win with over 10,000 fans in attendance.
March 23, 2002-Randie Wirt hits two free throws with eight seconds left to clinch a Colorado upset over No. 2 seed and No. 5 ranked Stanford in the West Regional Semifinal, sending the third-seeded Buffaloes to their first Elite Eight since 1995.