No one could have predicted the success Allison Coleman would earn when she began playing basketball in third grade in the Griswold, CT recreation department. Encouraged by her family and coaching staff, Allison led her Griswold High School team to QVC Conference Championships in 1998, 1999, and 2000.

The athletic girls “ruled the street” where Meg Winfield grew up in Milford, CT. Most of the neighborhood girls were proficient at shooting, dribbling, and catching basketballs. Meg was fortunate to be surrounded by family basketball talent – her father, sisters, brother, uncles and nephew all played locally.

Lauren Anderson, Senior Associate Director of Athletics at the University of Rhode Island retired in June, 2008 after a 41-year career in athletics. Her experiences and ultimately, her career path have mirrored the growth of women's sports in New England. She attended Woodstock Academy, in Woodstock, CT at a time when the only sports offered to girls were basketball and softball.

Basketball has been a special part of Amanda’s life since age six. She was able to capitalize on amazing high school and college experiences and turn them into an opportunity to play professionally in Greece and Cyprus, doing what she loved while seeing the world.

Bob Meyers has been a part of CT basketball for more than 40 years. Bob played basketball and baseball at Stamford Catholic High School where he graduated seventh in the Class of 1961. Bob continued his education at Providence College where he obtained a degree in Science Education.

Shea Ralph seemed destined to play basketball. Her mother was an All-American at UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina and was good friends with Tennessee coach, Pat Summitt. Shea started playing basketball at six years and immediately fell in love with the game. By the time she was eleven years old, she was on an AAU team and was practicing basketball fundamentals every day.

Krista L. Rappahahn did not set out to be a record-setting high school and collegiate athlete, but with lots of hard work and with a supportive family, friends and coaches, she was blessed with a fantastic career. While participating in both gymnastics and soccer as a kid, she decided to try her hand at basketball. It was a risk that yielded amazing results.

A little boy with an 8 foot basket over the garage…a ball that won’t bounce because it is 15 degrees outside…a boy’s imagination that carries him to victory at the buzzer……Priceless! That is how Howard Gura explained his start in basketball and it continues to be why basketball is so special to him. “A ball and a hoop – two, if you are lucky – offer the greatest exercise anyone can ever want.”