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US 250th Anniversary

Immaculata University Mighty Macs look back on college basketball legacy: "We built it"

By
Nikki DeMentri
Nikki DeMentri
Nikki DeMentri is a general assignment reporter with CBS Philadelphia. The Central New Jersey native is thrilled she is sharing the stories of where she grew up.
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Nikki DeMentri

/ CBS Philadelphia

Immaculata University is home to three national women's college basketball championships. In fact, the  were the first to ever win the title in 1972.

"These young players, they might not know us, but I'm sure along the line, they've heard our story," Denise Conway Crawford said.

Crawford, alongside Theresa Shank Grentz, Judy Marra Martelli, Sue Forsyth O'Grady and Betty Anne Hoffman Quinn, played on the storied Mighty Macs team in the 1970s. These five ladies helped put women's basketball on the map.

Members of the Immaculata University "Mighty Macs"
Members of the Immaculata University Mighty Macs CBS News Philadelphia

"With the 250th anniversary, there's a piece in there where Immaculata women's basketball has a place, as we were very fortunate to be a part of that," Grentz said. 

"When I drive up here, driving through that parking lot, looking up at that building, I go 'Gosh, it's just like yesterday.' Driving out here to practice," Martelli said with a laugh and smile.

In 1972, the ladies had a one-way plane ticket to Illinois to participate in the first national college women's basketball tournament. Then the unthinkable happened.

"Even getting invited to the tournament was a long shot. Cathy Rush's whole approach to the season was nobody knows who we are. Immaculata? They're not going to make the tournament, so the teams that we played, we had to pretty much defeat decisively — 40, 50 point lead," Quinn said.

Immaculata University "Mighty Macs" women's basketball team
Immaculata University Mighty Macs women's basketball team Immaculata University

The Chester County team came home as champions to fanfare at the airport. In 1973, the Mighty Macs defended their title and won again.

"We knew each other from high school, so when we came in, we said, 'All right, listen, we're going to play. We going to play for four years and we're not losing,'" Grentz said.

The young women went for the three-peat in 1974 and beat Mississippi College for a third championship. Those trophies are still proudly displayed on campus today.

"Blessed is an operative word. We weren't just lucky. We were blessed," Crawford said.

Immaculata University "Mighty Macs" women's basketball team
Immaculata University Mighty Macs women's basketball team Immaculata University

But decades after their success on the court, do these women consider themselves trailblazers?

Grentz would call them architects.

"Those other names, they can go," Grentz said. "We're architects, engineers, we made this and we built it."

While they haven't played together in more than five decades, off the court, their friendship runs deep.

The ladies say they still stay in touch with their coach, Cathy Rush, too.

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