Opening the doors of opportunity

Posted on Friday, March 04, 2022

As students looked on, Judy Greer ’57 held up a small piece of wood, part of the old flooring from Callaway Auditorium where she had once played basketball. Some might see it as scrap, but for Greer, it was a reminder of a valuable time in her life, one that ultimately helped transform LaGrange College athletics.

Marking the 50^th anniversary of the Title IX statute that codified gender equality in education, alumnae Greer and Mavis Sprayberry Trice ’60 returned to campus and shared their history, which was instrumental in establishing women’s sports on the Hill.

“When I came to LaGrange in the fall of 1953, there was women’s and girls’ basketball in the state, and quite a few (female athletes) came here who had no outlet,” Greer told the young men and women who filled Corn Auditorium in the Frank and Laura Lewis Library. “Nothing was here for us to play.”

A group of male students started an intramural basketball club, and she and other female students also decided to create one.

“I don’t think we were flaming feminists just because the guys were starting to do something, but it was because most of us had played it in high school and we still wanted to play,” she said.

Greer made a request to then-business manager Austin Cook, who agreed to fund uniforms for the women. They eventually were able to secure places to play at local school gymnasiums, although they initially couldn’t play the full-court style of the game like the men.

Greer said there was no resistance from the student body or administration over their efforts but noted that few people showed up to games.

“They didn’t antagonize us, but I’m not sure they supported us,” she admitted.

Trice’s journey began soon after.

“I came here in the fall of 1956, and as you can hear, Judy had laid all of the groundwork,” she said. “I had played basketball my entire high school career, started playing basketball when I was in elementary school and continued playing.”

Coincidentally, both women would later become tennis players and instructors, even though neither received formal training outside of their physical education classes.

“I had won my first tennis racket by guessing the number of candy pieces in a big jar at one of the drugstores in Newnan, Georgia, where I grew up,” Trice said. “So, I had this tennis racket, and there were several of us who played basketball throughout high school, and we just started playing tennis one summer.”

Greer had a long career teaching tennis at Oxford College—spurred by a chance friendship with the dean’s daughter, a fellow LC student—with a short stint at Winthrop College. Trice became a certified instructor teaching people wherever she moved, which was frequently with her United Methodist minister husband, the late Dr. James T. Trice Jr. ’61.

“When we would move … I would get out my racket, and I was off,” she said. “My husband would say, ‘You’re off again,’ and I would tell him, ‘Yep, and every time you see somebody sitting in the pew that I had on the tennis court, that’s one more.’”

The women also gave advice to the young attendees, encouraging them to pursue their passion in whatever field it lies, even in the face of those who might dissuade them. They emphasized that achieving goals takes continuous hard work and discipline, but it’s worth the result. Both also underscored that students should use the gifts they have and pass the lessons they learn to the next generation.

“What we have in common with you all, and what you all have in common with us is that LaGrange College nourished us all,” Greer said. “So, it’s continued to replenish for others who come here. Tell about your LaGrange College experience, because very soon the time will come for you to nourish.”

 

Campus notes

The 25^th Anniversary Azalea Storytelling Festival kicks off tonight at Callaway Auditorium. Some of the nation’s premier storytellers will be sharing throughout the weekend. Details on times and tickets are here. (LC students receive free admission and CE credit.)

Tickets for “Pump Boys and Dinettes” at Price Theater are available beginning Monday, March 7, a 9 a.m. by emailing priceboxoffice@kongtiao11.com . The show will run March 17-20. Adult tickets are $10, and children are $5. Faculty, staff and students are free.

Service Saturday is set for Saturday, March 12, from 10 a.m. to noon. Participants will work with Chattahoochee Riverkeeper on a stream restoration project at Park Creek on campus. Register here.

Mark your calendar for the formal Inauguration of Dr. Susanna Baxter as 26^th President of LaGrange College: Friday, April 22, in Callaway Auditorium. Delayed by the pandemic, the event now has been set and plans are underway for a weeklong series of activities. Details will be forthcoming.

Dr. John Cook, Professor of Religion, recently published “Titus 1:12: Epimenides, Ancient Christian Scholars, The Death of Zeus, and the Cretan Paradox,” in Zeitschrift für antikes Christentum/Journal of Ancient Christianity 25(3) (2021) 367–394.

Political Science students Mason McLaughlin and Tamino Schoeffer presented papers at Georgia State University’s graduate-student Atlanta Symposium on Political Science on Feb. 26. Mason presented research on whether Boko Haram's terror attacks were more likely to occur when there is a Nigerian Christian or Muslim President.  Tamino presented on how the rise and fall of Germany’s right wing AfD party led to a decreased support for NATO, and how it has recovered somewhat.

 

 

Cultural Enrichment events

Check LC Connect for Virtual CE events and instructions.

THROUGH MARCH 25
Young Alumni Lecture: Darius Jordan ’17

• Learn from Darius Jordan, recent LC Accountancy graduate, as he discusses his time as an undergraduate student and what advice and insight he has for current undergraduates.

FRIDAY, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY

Azalea Storytelling Festival (details above)
Callaway Auditorium

TUESDAY
Exercise Science Graduate Program Overview: Brenau University
11:15 a.m., Corn Auditorium, Lewis Library

• Admissions representatives from Brenau University will provide information regarding graduate programs in Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Physician Assistant Studies.

KPMG 2022 International Women’s Day Signature Event
noon, Room 330, Smith Hall

• The KPMG Network of Women (KNOW) and the Women of Risk Community (WORC) are excited to come together to celebrate the fifth consecutive KPMG International Women’s Day. 

THURSDAY
Restore and Affirm: Black Lives Matter
11:15 a.m., Bailey Room, Smith Hall

• Focused on informing and educating students and faculty on the Black Lives Matter movement, the event will include a discussion of how students and faculty can continue to advocate for and support the effort.

Career Options for Science Majors: Medical School and So Much More
11:15 a.m., Multimedia Classroom, Lewis Library

• LaGrange College alum Dr. Steve Harris ’88 will talk about his career since completing his undergraduate degree, including his master's and doctoral research, postdoctoral work at the NIH, and teaching medical and optometry students.

 

 

Sports

Softball
The Panthers (1-6) had an amazing comeback to get their first win and split a doubleheader with visiting Agnes Scott on Wednesday. After losing the first game 6-5, the team rallied from a 9-0 deficit to win the second game 10-9. Senior Kaitlin Redman had two doubles and three RBIs, while junior Maggie White was 3-for-3.

 

Baseball
The Panthers are ranked 21st in the first D3baseball.com/NCBWA Top 25 poll. LC is 9-1 after taking two of three games from visiting Nichols (Mass.) last weekend. Junior Cael Chatham batted .545 with five RBIs in the series.

  

Men’s Basketball
The Panthers (16-11) had their season end with an 81-77 overtime loss to Averett in the semifinals of the USA South Tournament last Saturday. LC finished as the USA South West Division co-champs. Senior Bershard Edwards had a career-high 27 points and fellow senior Kyle Brown 21 in their final LC game.

 

Calendar
(Please note that schedules may change due to circumstances beyond our control. Please check www.lagrangepanthers.com to confirm.)

FRIDAY (today)
Men’s Tennis vs. Gadsden State (Exhibition), 1 p.m., Greer Tennis Courts
Men’s Lacrosse vs. Hendrix, 7 p.m., Panther Field 

SATURDAY
Men’s Tennis at Birmingham-Southern, 1 p.m., Birmingham, Ala.

Baseball vs. Eastern Mennonite, 2/5 p.m., Cleaveland Field in Williamson Stadium 

SUNDAY
Softball vs. Mississippi University for Women, 12/2 p.m., LC Softball Complex

Baseball vs. Eastern Mennonite, 2 p.m., Cleaveland Field in Williamson Stadium

MONDAY-TUESDAY
Golf at Savannah Invitational, Savannah, Ga.

TUESDAY
Softball vs. St. John Fisher, 4/6 p.m., LC Softball Complex

WEDNESDAY
Men’s Tennis vs. Marion Military Institute (Exhibition), 1 p.m., Greer Tennis Courts

Men’s Lacrosse vs. Point, 7 p.m., Panther Field 

THURSDAY
Beach Volleyball vs. Florida Southern, 9 a.m., Strack Beach Volleyball Courts

 

 

Video of the Week

3D Journeys 2022: “Triple Play: Mathematics, Baseball & Board Games”
As part of the Boston: Back to Our Beginnings lecture series, Dr. Greg McClanahan elaborates on his lifelong love of numbers and America's Sport, explaining how to calculate a player’s batting average and RBI and the history of the Boston Red Sox.

 

 

In the headlines

LaGrange College softball earns first win under new head coach Melanie Rushing – LaGrange Daily News, March 3, 2022

Troup County CLCP Literary Bee makes stinging return – LaGrange Daily News, March 2, 2022

Azalea Storytelling Festival to return Friday – LaGrange Daily News, March 2, 2022

Callaway High closes Black History Month with a collaborative celebration – WRBL (Columbus), March 1, 2022

 

Category: College

Keywords: women in athletics, sports, alumni