Kay Yow

Kay Yow

Kay Yow, East Carolina (NC) - Zeta Lambda, was an award-winning women’s basketball coach at North Carolina State University. She was also the head coach for the United States Women’s Basketball Team for the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea. One of the most respected members of the coaching community, Kay proved to be a winner whose coaching expertise and motivation of young people earned her international fame. In the summer of 1986, Kay led the USA team to a gold medal at the Goodwill Games in Moscow with a brilliant victory over the Russians. She duplicated that feat in August at the 1986 World Championships. In 2000, Kay received the John and Nellie Wooden Award for the top women’s college basketball coach in the nation and was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2007, she received the inaugural Jimmy V ESPY Award for Perseverance. Kay was a tireless advocate for breast cancer research and prevention. She was the 1987 Woman of the Year.