ESPNHS Girl

Paige Sultzbach, the high school baseball player whose team won a state title by forfeit when the opposing team refused to play against a girl, has pioneering role model in her corner -- her school's athletic director is also one of two female football head coaches in the country.

Mesa (Ariz.) Preparatory Academy's starting second baseman helped lead her team to an undefeated regular season as a freshman. She then became a national media sensation after Our Lady of Sorrows, a rival school in Phoenix that lost twice to Mesa Prep during the regular season, forfeited the Arizona Charter Athletic Association's 1A state baseball championship on May 10 rather than play a team that fields a female player.

The story -- and Sultzbach herself -- became a major topic of discussion on TV, sports radio and social media.

But Sultzbach had inspiration when it comes to dispelling stereotypes as a woman in a traditionally male-dominated sports role. Mesa Prep athletic director Amy Arnold led the Monsoons to another state championship game -- in football.

Read the complete story here.

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

Tennis star Venus Williamswas 14 when she turned pro. At 17, she reached her first U.S. Open final. Now 31, Williams has collected 43 WTA Tour titles, including 21 Grand Slam titles (seven in singles, 12 in doubles, two in mixed doubles), and three Olympic gold medals (one in singles, two in doubles). She is No. 21 in ESPN's countdown.

But more than anything, along with her sister Serena, Venus revolutionized the game. Women's tennis is collectively bigger, stronger and faster now because players have had to change the way they train to keep pace with the Williams sisters.

"When I was young, I had a poster of Venus on my bedroom wall," says 19-year-old Sloane Stephens, who is also African-American, and currently ranked No. 79 in the WTA standings. "I looked at that poster every day and dreamed of being just like her. She is a great role model, a strong businesswoman and a champion of women in all sports."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers
No. 26: Basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw
No. 25: Swimmer Dara Torres
No. 24: Golfer Nancy Lopez
No. 23: Swimmer Tracy Caulkins
No. 22: Soccer player Marta Vieira da Silva

MILFORD, N.H. -- She’s been considered one of America’s elite young soccer talents since her preteen years, but Morgan Andrews put a little space between herself and the rest of the field Thursday when she was named the 2011-12 Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year.

Andrews was surprised with the news in her Milford (N.H.) English class by a hero of the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup, Ali Krieger, who earned Gatorade Virginia Player of the Year honors in 2002-03.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” said Andrews, who turned 17 on March 25. “I owe so much to so many for this. I wouldn’t be here without the love and support of this incredible, amazing community. I’m literally shaking. I just don’t believe it.”

Read the complete story here.

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

American midfielder Leslie Osborne still remembers the first time she saw the No. 22 woman in ESPN's countdown play.

Marta, as she was simply known, was only 16 at the 2002 Under-19 Women's World Cup, but she already was special enough to leave an impression.

"She had qualities I had never seen before in other female players," Osborne recalls.

Still just 26, Marta already has gone on to be a five-time FIFA World Player of the Year (2006-10). She has netted 80 goals in 72 games for Brazil, and was the leading scorer in Women's Professional Soccer during each of her three seasons.

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers
No. 26: Basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw
No. 25: Swimmer Dara Torres
No. 24: Golfer Nancy Lopez
No. 23: Swimmer Tracy Caulkins

This story originally appeared in the May/June issue of ESPNHS Magazine.

Pretty soon, riding your bike to school will serve more than one purpose (i.e. avoiding a seat on the cheese bus, or worse, mom's car). It could ultimately be your ticket to college, just like any other major sport.

For the past two years, the National Interscholastic Cycling Association, a nonprofit organization formed in 2009 to expand the sport, has been working toward establishing mountain biking clubs in high schools in all 50 states by 2020. So far, five leagues exist – Northern California, Southern California, Colorado, Washington and Texas -- with two more slated to launch this fall in Minnesota and Utah. More than 15 additional states have submitted bids to be the next NICA Project League.

“We want to give every student in America the opportunity to improve his or her body, mind and character through cross-country mountain bike racing,” says Matt Fritzinger, executive director of the NICA. “We want people to know it's a sport just like baseball or basketball.”

In addition to receiving training and coaching, league members will race on loops of up to six miles, and will learn bike-handling skills, maintenance techniques, how to fix a flat and proper etiquette when riding alongside hikers, dogs or horses on the trails.

The sport will be open to boys and girls, grades 9-12. According to Fritzinger, 1,150 high schoolers biked in 2011 -- and the number is expected to jump to 2,000 this year.

Anything that legitimizes mountain biking as an interscholastic sport will certainly help rising stars, like Rachel Harris, 16, garner college attention. The sophomore at Monarch (Louisville, Colo.) started shredding dirt trails near her home three years ago. Last summer, she won gold in the category 3 women's 15-18 cross-country competition at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships.

Get In gear

Want to start a mountain bike team at your school? Check out the “Team Starter Kit” at nationalmtb.org. It outlines everything you need to do, including how to get local businesses to help fund the costs for jerseys, race fees, coaches’ fees (if necessary) and bikes, which can cost anywhere from $300 to $3,000.

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

When swimmer Tracy Caulkins was just 15, she won five gold medals at the 1978 world championships, helping her to become the youngest-ever winner of the Sullivan Award as America's outstanding amateur athlete.

Imagine her disappointment when the United States boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics when she was 17 and in her prime.

But, Caulkins, No. 23 in ESPN's countdown, refocused her training while competing for the University of Florida, where she won 12 NCAA titles, and came back to win gold in the 400-meter individual medley, the 200-meter IM and the medley relay, where she swam the breaststroke leg, at the 1984 Olympics.

"She was the most amazing all-around swimmer I've ever seen," Rowdy Gaines says. "Think about it: She set American records in every stroke."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers
No. 26: Basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw
No. 25: Swimmer Dara Torres
No. 24: Golfer Nancy Lopez

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

Before golfer Nancy Lopez even graduated from high school, she already had a runner-up finish at the U.S. Women's Open.

Lopez, No. 24 in ESPN's countdown, went on to collect 48 career victories and earn a spot in the World Golf Hall of Fame.

And nobody captured the adoration of the galleries quite like Lopez.

"She loved the crowd, they loved her, and she fed off of that," former LPGA pro Hollis Stacy says. "She just had a beautiful smile on the golf course. Even for those of us within the ropes, Nancy's smile always eased the tension.

"She would smile, then stab you in the heart by making a putt."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers
No. 26: Basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw
No. 25: Swimmer Dara Torres

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

In the swimming pool, nobody has been faster longer than Dara Torres.

The 45-year-old mother, who is No. 25 in ESPN's countdown, has collected 12 Olympic medals over five Games, including three silvers at the 2008 Games when she was 41. Torres is still among the best in the world on any given day, swimming a time of 25.24 seconds in a runner-up finish in the 50-meter freestyle at the U.S. winter nationals last year, and is attempting to swim in her sixth Olympics this summer in London.

Whether she makes it or not, her place in the sport is safe.

"We've never seen anything like what she's done," says Rowdy Gaines, the NBC swimming analyst and three-time gold medalist at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. "Certainly, among women, she's one of the most influential swimmers of all time."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers
No. 26: Basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw

An upset gave way to pure joy for boxer Claressa Shields.

Despite suffering the first loss of her amateur career at the Women's World Boxing Championships in Qinhuangdao, China, the 17-year-old from Flint, Mich., has earned a berth to the London Olympics. Women's boxing will be making its Olympic debut as a medal sport this summer.

According to the Detroit Free Press, Shields earned her spot when England's Savannah Marshall, who beat Shields earlier this week, won her semifinal bout and advanced to the finals of the middleweight division.

"It would mean everything to me to get a spot so that people could stop calling me an 'Olympic hopeful,' " Shields said prior to the world championships. "I know I can do it. I'm telling everyone I will be there."

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

With a game unlike anything women's basketball had seen, Chamique Holdsclaw was tabbed the "female Michael Jordan."

She had size, but also grace. She had a fluid outside shot, but could also post up. She possessed an endearing goofiness and innocence, but also a steely will at game's end.

Holdsclaw, No. 26 in ESPN's countdown, helped Tennessee become the first women's basketball team in NCAA history to three-peat, winning titles in 1996, '97 and '98.

She finished her college career with 3,025 points and 1,295 rebounds, becoming just the fifth player in NCAA history to score more than 3,000. She led Tennessee to a record of 134-17, and twice won the Naismith Award (1998 and '99) as the nation's top player. She would go on to become the No. 1 pick in the 1999 WNBA draft and earn Rookie of the Year honors. She was also a six-time WNBA All-Star and a member of Team USA, which won Olympic gold in 2000.

"She made every young player want to be the next Chamique Holdsclaw," says Holly Warlick, now Tennessee's coach. "And, boy, was that good for women's basketball."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz
No. 27: Soccer player Michelle Akers

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

She was a four-time All-American at Central Florida. She scored 105 goals in 153 appearances for the U.S. She earned the Golden Boot as the leading scorer at the 1991 Women's World Cup. She won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Summer Games and another World Cup in 1999. She was voted FIFA Woman Player of the Century, alongside China's Sun Wen. And in 2004, she was one of two women on Pele's list of the 125 greatest living players.

But you might not have heard of Michelle Akers, No. 27 in ESPN's countdown.

"She was one of the greatest players ever, but kids now don't necessarily know who she was because there was so much less exposure back then," former U.S. star Julie Foudy says. "The game was really just starting with her."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman
No. 28: Marathoner Grete Waitz

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

When Grete Waitz finished her first marathon in world-record time, she vowed it would be her last.

But the Norwegian with the blond pigtails, who is No. 28 in ESPN's countdown, ended up winning the New York City Marathon nine times, including that debut in 1978, and became the first world-class female marathoner.

In addition to her incredible determination, Waitz had a generous spirit that manifested itself in her charity work and in the "Active Against Cancer" foundation she established in her native country following her own diagnosis in 2005. When she died in 2011, at the age of 57, she was mourned in Norway, where she was a national hero, and also in New York.

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers
No. 29: Basketball player Nancy Lieberman

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years.

To the asphalt warriors (all men) on the pickup courts of New York City, the red-haired girl from Far Rockaway, Queens, was just another player. It was there that Nancy Lieberman, No. 29 in ESPN's countdown, honed her electric all-around game and her legend was born.

At 17, she was named to the U.S. women's national team, which took silver a year later at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. She then enrolled at Old Dominion, where she led the Lady Monarchs to two AIAW national championships (1979 and '80) and became the first two-time winner of the Wade Trophy as the country's best player.

"Nancy was the face of the game," says Marianne Stanley, who coached Lieberman at ODU. "She was a relentless competitor, always seeking to improve. You had to chase her out of the gym. You could find her in there at 1 a.m."

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit
No. 30: Sprinter Gail Devers

Claressa Shields, a 17-year-old boxer from Flint, Mich., and the top-ranked American in her weight class, was upset at the Women's World Boxing Championships in Qinhuangdao, China.

Shields was trying to clinch a berth to the London Olympics with a top-eight finish in the single-elimination tournament. The loss to England's Savannah Marshall was Shields' first loss as an amateur.

According to MLive, Shields' hopes now rest with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Tripartite Commission, which will add a fighter to each weight class after the world championships.

"It would mean everything to me to get a spot so that people could stop calling me an 'Olympic hopeful,' " Shields said prior to the championships. "I know I can do it."

ESPN is marking the 40th anniversary of Title IX by unveiling the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years

Forget her colorful fingernails. Gail Devers' true signature was breaking the hearts of her fiercest rivals.

Devers, one of the greatest sprinters in Olympic history and No. 30 in ESPN's countdown, certainly had a flair for the dramatic.

At the 1992 Barcelona Games, Devers won gold in the 100 meters by beating Jamaica's Juliet Cuthbert in a photo finish. The next year, at the world championships, she won the 100 after besting Cuthbert's Jamaican compatriot, Merlene Ottey, in another photo finish. And at the 1996 Atlanta Games, Devers did it again, crossing the line in exactly the same time as Ottey, but winning gold thanks to the help of a high-speed camera.

"She's the person who never stops trying," said Greece's Voula Patoulidou, the gold medalist in the 100-meter hurdles in Barcelona.

Read the complete story from espnW here.

Earlier in this series:
No. 40: Diver Fu Mingxia
No. 39: Jockey Julie Krone
No. 38: Gymnast Mary Lou Retton
No. 37: Hockey player Cammi Granato
No. 36: Soccer player Kristine Lilly
No. 35: Basketball player Diana Taurasi
No 34: Volleyball player Flo Hyman
No. 33: Soccer player Abby Wambach
No. 32: Swimmer Mary T. Meagher
No. 31: Marathoner Joan Benoit