** Golden State Valkyries averaging 18,000 for home games.
*** Indiana Fever averaging 16,000 for home games.
*** Teams flying on charter jets
*** TV viewership matching NBA viewership
*** Caitlin Clark has $28 million contract with Nike.
The interest in women’s sports is booming. It made me reflect on some of the “pioneers” who got women’s sports started in the 1970’s.
In the Fall of 2022, we were planning a celebration for the Galesburg High School girls basketball program. Interscholastic girls basketball at GHS started in 1972-1973, right after Title IX was introduced. In the Fall of 2022, we anticipated that the Streaks were going to reach a total of 1,000 wins in program history.
As part of the celebration, we tried to reach out to former player and fans to purchase 1,000 win t-shirts. I received a letter ordering a t-shirt from Molly Smith, who graduated from GHS in 1975. Molly attached a note to her order, which read in part,”Making the team back in 1972 changed my life- finally getting to officially play.” Her letter and my curiousity about that first season, led me to ask her to answer question for Massey Basketball Blog.
It is easy to think that Title IX came, and immediately high school girls were not only given the opportunity to play but were given equality. As you read Molly’s memories, it is apparent girls were given the opportunity but certainly were not given equality.
At many schools, it took decades for budgets, equipment, facilities, and coach’s pay to become even comparable. The excitement and support for Streaks girls basketball in the 1990’s was not found in the 1970’s.
I hope all former and present girls basketball players will have the chance to read Molly’s reflections on what the first years of girls basketball were like. The toughness and the commitment of the first players is inspiring.
Molly Smith- I moved to Galesburg in 1968, the summer before 6th grade.
I think the Streaks went to state that year (’68-’69) and maybe we got a day off school. Also, I remember 60 Minutes or First Tuesday coming to town to do a story on basketball mania in small town America. It was a BIG deal around town, although my family didn’t follow Streaks sports.I went to most of my JH boys games at Churchill. We even pooled our money a few times and got chartered buses to go to out of town games. I went to HS games fairly regularly once I was in HS.
I got a basketball hoop for Christmas when I was 9 or 10. It attracted kids, mostly boys, so I got to play-haha. In Galesburg, my driveway was brick, so that made me really pay attention to my dribbling.
In junior high they made us play the 6-person team rules like in Iowa. That was so annoying and since I’m short, dribbling and defense was what I was best at and obviously a really fun part of the game. Only getting to bounce the ball three times before throwing did not make for exciting PE basketball, to say the least. There was a club in JH called Girls Athletic Association that I was in and I think we got to play regular basketball there.
“I sure did dream of playing on a real team.”
Massey- I interviewed Pete Thierry who was an African American player in the early 1950's. He was a start on the JH team but African Americans were allowed to play at GHS in that time. So he said he didn't even really think about playing high school basketball. For you, all the way thru grade school and JH, there was no girls basketball team at GHS. As a JH student, did you ever even think of it as a possibility of having a high school team? Was it a dream for you to play?
Molly Smith- I sure did dream of playing on a “real team”! I read books about baseball, watched the Cubs on TV, and went to the boys’ little league games where they got to wear official uniforms- I was so jealous! When I lived near Chicago, the boys in the neighborhood only allowed me to be permanent catcher in their whiffle ball games. Luckily the boys in the neighborhood I moved to on Olive Street in Galesburg were more open-minded and we all played a lot of street sports.
It was at the end of 9th grade (JH), when I first started hearing about this “Title IX” law that would open the doors to girls getting to play.
Massey- As a young person, were you aware when Title IX became law? Do you remember how and when you first found out that GHS was going to have girls basketball?
Molly Smith-There was some kind of buzz. Every summer there was a track meet/Jamboree at Lombard JH and a member of the Galesburg Jaycees organized the local winners to go to regional meets. So by the summer before I started high school, I was hanging around people who were talking about the possibility of girls getting to play. That was the time of the ERA state ratification attempts, so my mom talked about it, too. The topic of women’s rights was out there.
Massey- I interviewed Pete Thierry who was an African American player in the early 1950's. He was a start on the JH team but African Americans were allowed to play at GHS in that time. So he said he didn't even really think about playing high school basketball. For you, all the way thru grade school and JH, there was no girls basketball team at GHS. As a JH student, did you ever even think of it as a possibility of having a high school team? Was it a dream for you to play?
Molly Smith- I sure did dream of playing on a “real team”! I read books about baseball, watched the Cubs on TV, and went to the boys’ little league games where they got to wear official uniforms- I was so jealous! When I lived near Chicago, the boys in the neighborhood only allowed me to be permanent catcher in their whiffle ball games. Luckily the boys in the neighborhood I moved to on Olive Street in Galesburg were more open-minded and we all played a lot of street sports.
It was at the end of 9th grade (JH), when I first started hearing about this “Title IX” law that would open the doors to girls getting to play.
Massey- As a young person, were you aware when Title IX became law? Do you remember how and when you first found out that GHS was going to have girls basketball?
Molly Smith-There was some kind of buzz. Every summer there was a track meet/Jamboree at Lombard JH and a member of the Galesburg Jaycees organized the local winners to go to regional meets. So by the summer before I started high school, I was hanging around people who were talking about the possibility of girls getting to play. That was the time of the ERA state ratification attempts, so my mom talked about it, too. The topic of women’s rights was out there.
“The names were posted on a wall by the gym, I was thrilled.”
Massey- How many girls tried out the first year? Were some girls cut? How did you find out you had made the varsity team as a sophomore? What was your reaction?
Molly Smith- I don’t remember how many tried out—dozens, not hundreds. Yes, there were cuts-only 15 made it for both JV and varsity. Mary Padilla, Melony Shumard, and I were the three sophomores. The names were posted on a wall by the gym. I was thrilled. I did not think it was a sure thing that I would make it.
Massey- The first year, were all your practices at Hitchcock or did you have some practices at Thiel (GHS)? Were your games at GHS?
Molly Smith- Our games were at the high school. I think in the first year all of our practices were at Hitchcock.
Massey- How many girls tried out the first year? Were some girls cut? How did you find out you had made the varsity team as a sophomore? What was your reaction?
Molly Smith- I don’t remember how many tried out—dozens, not hundreds. Yes, there were cuts-only 15 made it for both JV and varsity. Mary Padilla, Melony Shumard, and I were the three sophomores. The names were posted on a wall by the gym. I was thrilled. I did not think it was a sure thing that I would make it.
Massey- The first year, were all your practices at Hitchcock or did you have some practices at Thiel (GHS)? Were your games at GHS?
Molly Smith- Our games were at the high school. I think in the first year all of our practices were at Hitchcock.
“Spending our whole lives watching boys get to play.”
Massey- What do you remember about your first game? Your first season?
Molly Smith- For our first game we were driven in cars over to Monmouth. I think I drove in Mr. Moore’s car with other teammates. (Swack probably had to recruit car rides too—as if she didn’t have enough to do!) I played in the JV game. My mom came. (It was probably the first sporting event she had attended since she was in HS.) We won both games and went on to win all of our games that season. We were a scrappy team, having had no formal training, but we were all in.
I knew some of the girls on the original team from the neighborhood and the summer playground program that Galesburg had for elementary schoolers. I knew some of the girls from school activities. We all got along well and were supportive of each other. I think we were all so happy to play after spending our whole lives watching boys get to play while we only played informally.
We had to buy our own shirts and I remember my mom taking me to Sears to buy a pair of Converse basketball shoes before the first game. I’d been wearing regular sneakers up until then.
Massey- My first year coaching was in 1974-5 as a sophomore boys assistant coach. The soph boys and varsity boys always practiced in Thiel. I don't remember if it was once a week or once every couple weeks, but the girls team would practice in Thiel (GHS). One of the boys coaches expressed frustration that the "girls are taking away practice time." The boys teams still had practices on those days but at different times. As being a "pioneer in girls basketball", did you find that there were other students (male and female), teachers, or other coaches who gave you a hard time or put you down as an athlete?
Molly Smith- I do remember when we actually got to practice in the GHS gym. But I think it was the courts that were up on the second deck-not the game court. We were still mostly at Hitchcock.
I don’t remember negative attitudes from people about my wanting to be on a team-probably because I would definitely not have cared one bit about anyone who was going to dis’ me for playing. I had always been a tomboy and so I was not intimidated by people who tried to denigrate girls.
I am attaching a letter to the editor that I wrote in my sophomore year in college. My mom reported to me that someone had written an article in the Register Mail about “girls wanting too much too soon”. She suggested I write a response. (I am including a photo of the letter to editor that was on the same topic-female athlete membership in G-Club.)
Massey- What do you remember about your first game? Your first season?
Molly Smith- For our first game we were driven in cars over to Monmouth. I think I drove in Mr. Moore’s car with other teammates. (Swack probably had to recruit car rides too—as if she didn’t have enough to do!) I played in the JV game. My mom came. (It was probably the first sporting event she had attended since she was in HS.) We won both games and went on to win all of our games that season. We were a scrappy team, having had no formal training, but we were all in.
I knew some of the girls on the original team from the neighborhood and the summer playground program that Galesburg had for elementary schoolers. I knew some of the girls from school activities. We all got along well and were supportive of each other. I think we were all so happy to play after spending our whole lives watching boys get to play while we only played informally.
We had to buy our own shirts and I remember my mom taking me to Sears to buy a pair of Converse basketball shoes before the first game. I’d been wearing regular sneakers up until then.
Massey- My first year coaching was in 1974-5 as a sophomore boys assistant coach. The soph boys and varsity boys always practiced in Thiel. I don't remember if it was once a week or once every couple weeks, but the girls team would practice in Thiel (GHS). One of the boys coaches expressed frustration that the "girls are taking away practice time." The boys teams still had practices on those days but at different times. As being a "pioneer in girls basketball", did you find that there were other students (male and female), teachers, or other coaches who gave you a hard time or put you down as an athlete?
Molly Smith- I do remember when we actually got to practice in the GHS gym. But I think it was the courts that were up on the second deck-not the game court. We were still mostly at Hitchcock.
I don’t remember negative attitudes from people about my wanting to be on a team-probably because I would definitely not have cared one bit about anyone who was going to dis’ me for playing. I had always been a tomboy and so I was not intimidated by people who tried to denigrate girls.
I am attaching a letter to the editor that I wrote in my sophomore year in college. My mom reported to me that someone had written an article in the Register Mail about “girls wanting too much too soon”. She suggested I write a response. (I am including a photo of the letter to editor that was on the same topic-female athlete membership in G-Club.)
“If I was three years older, I would have missed out.”
Massey- On the flip of that, who were people (family, friends, teachers, coaches) in your life at that time who really gave you encouragement and made you feel good about participating?
Molly Smith- Mr. Spencer (my chemistry teacher) brought his little boys to the games. There was a radio guy- Jim Swickard, who had a talk show called Swick on Sports. He had us girls on the show more than once. Mr. Moore helped by driving us to the games that first year and there must have been others. Teachers like Mr. Devore attended games, as well as some of my friends (boys and girls). Our crowds were pretty small.
And of course, I can’t say enough about Terry Swackhammer. I think she coached all of the sports at first. She was phenomenal-taking girls that had little or no formal training and teaching us how to play as a 5-person team and cohesive working unit.
I think I just focused on the fact that it was the most amazing thing that I actually got to play. If I’d been 3 years older, I would have missed out. (I think there was a team established the year before, but they never got to play because the law hadn’t been passed.)
Massey- On the flip of that, who were people (family, friends, teachers, coaches) in your life at that time who really gave you encouragement and made you feel good about participating?
Molly Smith- Mr. Spencer (my chemistry teacher) brought his little boys to the games. There was a radio guy- Jim Swickard, who had a talk show called Swick on Sports. He had us girls on the show more than once. Mr. Moore helped by driving us to the games that first year and there must have been others. Teachers like Mr. Devore attended games, as well as some of my friends (boys and girls). Our crowds were pretty small.
And of course, I can’t say enough about Terry Swackhammer. I think she coached all of the sports at first. She was phenomenal-taking girls that had little or no formal training and teaching us how to play as a 5-person team and cohesive working unit.
I think I just focused on the fact that it was the most amazing thing that I actually got to play. If I’d been 3 years older, I would have missed out. (I think there was a team established the year before, but they never got to play because the law hadn’t been passed.)
“Appreciate that we were called the Streaks.”
Massey- While I am sure you were excited about getting to play, you had to have seen the many inequities that still existed between opportunities for girls and boys in athletics. What were some of your frustrations or issues that angered you?
Molly Smith- The glaring inequities were omnipresent and annoying. Having to drive our own cars, or hitch rides with teammates over to practice at Hitchcock-I doubt it was even a regulation sized gym and the floor was “soft”, to say the least. We knew that the boys got free shoes and for that first year we had to buy our own shirts and, of course, shoes. We got uniforms the next year, but never shoes. We had to raise money (bake sales and selling candy bars) for our own letters!
I did, however, appreciate that we were called the Streaks. There may have been attempts to call us the Streakettes, but in my time, we were legit Silver Streaks.
Massey- While I am sure you were excited about getting to play, you had to have seen the many inequities that still existed between opportunities for girls and boys in athletics. What were some of your frustrations or issues that angered you?
Molly Smith- The glaring inequities were omnipresent and annoying. Having to drive our own cars, or hitch rides with teammates over to practice at Hitchcock-I doubt it was even a regulation sized gym and the floor was “soft”, to say the least. We knew that the boys got free shoes and for that first year we had to buy our own shirts and, of course, shoes. We got uniforms the next year, but never shoes. We had to raise money (bake sales and selling candy bars) for our own letters!
I did, however, appreciate that we were called the Streaks. There may have been attempts to call us the Streakettes, but in my time, we were legit Silver Streaks.
“I am really proud to have been on a team from the beginning of Title IX.”
Massey- Did you continue to play basketball in college or recreationally?
Molly Smith- I did not play in college and didn’t really know how I could have tried. I went to U of I and in my first semester, I met a girl in my coed PE basketball class who was on the team. We were about the same skill level, though I was certainly was not that great (and also very short.) I never played on an organized rec team, but I played a lot of pick up with friends through the years and even played in a few teacher-student games in the schools where I taught.
Massey- What did you do after GHS in terms of career?
Molly Smith- I became a chemistry teacher! I started as a second grade teacher (social studies minor) and then went back to get certified in chemistry and taught that for 22 years. I recently retired after 32 years of teaching.
Massey- When you ordered a 1000 win t-shirt, you made the following comment, "Title IX and making the team in 1972 changed my life- finally getting to officially play." In terms of the big picture, how do you feel these events changed you as you went forward?
Molly Smith- I was/am really proud to have been on a team from the beginning of Title IX. In the time of being on the team, I had friends that I would not have had. Some of the girls I knew from other activities or the neighborhood, but to be teammates was unique. For the first time I had athletic peers and it was wonderful. I was pretty active in things like student council and the Budget, but sports really widened my horizons. (Mary Padilla and I even got to attend the Bob Weiss Girls’ Basketball Camp in Aurora one summer.)
Becoming a better basketball player and knowing team dynamics, allowed me to do a small amount of girl basketball coaching myself. When I was teaching, I could talk to students and have relationships with the school coaches that I would not have had if I hadn’t also played. As you know, those out-of-class relationships are very important. Through the years, I attended SO many student games and just like me, the kids really appreciated the support.
1972-3 4 wins- 0 losses
Monmouth 84-21
East Moline 54-34
Rock Island 57-34
Moline 61-48
Massey- Did you continue to play basketball in college or recreationally?
Molly Smith- I did not play in college and didn’t really know how I could have tried. I went to U of I and in my first semester, I met a girl in my coed PE basketball class who was on the team. We were about the same skill level, though I was certainly was not that great (and also very short.) I never played on an organized rec team, but I played a lot of pick up with friends through the years and even played in a few teacher-student games in the schools where I taught.
Massey- What did you do after GHS in terms of career?
Molly Smith- I became a chemistry teacher! I started as a second grade teacher (social studies minor) and then went back to get certified in chemistry and taught that for 22 years. I recently retired after 32 years of teaching.
Massey- When you ordered a 1000 win t-shirt, you made the following comment, "Title IX and making the team in 1972 changed my life- finally getting to officially play." In terms of the big picture, how do you feel these events changed you as you went forward?
Molly Smith- I was/am really proud to have been on a team from the beginning of Title IX. In the time of being on the team, I had friends that I would not have had. Some of the girls I knew from other activities or the neighborhood, but to be teammates was unique. For the first time I had athletic peers and it was wonderful. I was pretty active in things like student council and the Budget, but sports really widened my horizons. (Mary Padilla and I even got to attend the Bob Weiss Girls’ Basketball Camp in Aurora one summer.)
Becoming a better basketball player and knowing team dynamics, allowed me to do a small amount of girl basketball coaching myself. When I was teaching, I could talk to students and have relationships with the school coaches that I would not have had if I hadn’t also played. As you know, those out-of-class relationships are very important. Through the years, I attended SO many student games and just like me, the kids really appreciated the support.
Besides, it was really fun and my husband and I had a lot of basketball dates!
Massey- Thanks for doing this- it will mean a lot to our present players to understand better what it was like for you and the first team. But I also think it may have the biggest impact on some of our alum players to read it. There are young women in their 20's, 30's, 40's who got to play in front of 2,000 people at GHS or 7,000 at state, who got college scholarships, and got articles written about them in the Register-Mail. These young women will have a real appreciation for what you and your teammates started
1972-3 4 wins- 0 losses
Monmouth 84-21
East Moline 54-34
Rock Island 57-34
Moline 61-48
1973-4 6 wins- 0 losses
East Moline 58-20
Rock Island 66-33
East Moline 41-35
Macomb 62-38
Macomb 73-46
Rock Island 32-28
1974-5 5 wins- 5 losses
Moline 55-42
Monmouth 42-21
Woodruff 56-28
East Moline 45-49
East Moline 35-37
Macomb 48-46
Rock Island 69-41
Macomb 30-31
Rock Island 46-28
Moline 29-55
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