Biography of Ann Meyers Drysdale

Ann Meyers wasn't necessarily the first pioneer in women's basketball; there were those before her that paved the trail. Ann Elizabeth Meyers simply took the game to a level it had never seen before. And in her era, few would argue that there was a finer athlete in women's sports. You'd be hard pressed to find an athlete who accomplished more in his or her career than Ann Meyers. Her compilation of milestones, records, awards and honors makes even the lay sports fan enviable. Ann Meyers was the first high school player to make a United States National Team. She was the first woman to receive a full athletic scholarship from UCLA. She was the first woman player named to Kodak's All-America team four straight seasons and the first woman elected to the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame. She played on the first women's Olympic team that earned a silver medal at the Montreal Games in 1976. She was the first woman player drafted by the Women's Basketball League (WBL). She was the first woman player to tryout with an NBA team, the Indiana Pacers. Long before her enshrinement into the Basketball Hall of Fame, Meyers became the first woman to have her uniform on display inside Dr. Naismith's shrine. And as the wife of the late Los Angeles Dodger pitcher and Baseball Hall of Famer Don Drysdale, Meyers has now created the first husband-wife team in any Hall of Fame.

In 1978, Meyers graduated from UCLA owning 12 of 13 school records and leading the Bruins to the AIAW national championship. She was rewarded with the Broderick Cup¾the Heisman of women's intercollegiate athletics¾as both the Outstanding Collegiate Basketball Player and Female Athlete in the country. Much like other versatile and talented fellow Hall of Famers, Ann Meyers has kept busy in the television industry following her playing days as an expert analyst for ESPN, NBC and CBS.