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University of Oregon women's basketball star Julie Cushing (25) was
named to the All Tournament Team by a panel of coaches following
Saturday s championship game Joining the freshman from Salem on
the team are Sue Smith and Karen Strong of Portland State University.
Margie Nielson of the University of Washington, and Joni Slagle of
Western Washington State College
Women in athletics
become ‘kosher’
By iUM WOLht
Of the Emerald
It used to be that a woman lost her femininity competing iri sports
— now it's the thing to do. says Becky Sisley, director of University
women's athletics.
There have been big changes in women's athletics in the last few
years," Sisley says. She predicts the change will continue, if not ac
celerate, in the next few years
An extensive regional structure for University women s competi
tion, the Northwest College Women s Sports Association, was formed
in 1966 National championships began in 1971. These increased
awareness and acceptance of local women athletes, Sisley says.
Two years ago federal legislation (Title IX) began requiring equity
in funding and structure of women's and men's athletics. "There has
been a tremendous surge cf change since then," Sisley says. The
University's own decision to merge its men s and women's programs
may have been a direct result of that legislation, she noted.
"We've been moving closer to the men's program in terms of
structure and caliber of competition," Sisley says. "The games are
becoming more intense and there is improved quality of competition."
Sisley says the media has been responsible for much of this
change. Olympic coverage and television focus on several women
athletes have given a better image to women's sports, says the director
"Only four or five years ago it was a big issue for girls to play in Little
League. Now we re finding that dads are just as proud of their daughters
as their sons. Talent is talent, and they can appreciate that," Sisley
says.
The history of women's sports at the University was largely un
changed for many years following the University's first female intercol
legiate competition, a tennis match against Oregon Agricultural College
(now Oregon State University) in 1915.
Traditionally women athletes have not had the benefits of large
budgets, expert coaching, adequate practice equipment and housing,
uniforms and officiating, Sisley says. To a great extent this disparity still
exists, but should be lessened by the sharing of facilities and staff under
the athletic merger now underway, she believes.
Sisley says high schools started building their women's programs
more quickly than did the University and entering freshmen are coming
in better-trained than some of the returning veterans.
Some high schools are now nearing equality in the sports oppor
tunities they provide boys and girls, observes Sisley. As this happens
the women's program begins to be more and more like the men s, she
said, with correspondence from high school women wanting to know
about the University sports opportunities and reputation.
Philosophically though, the women are consciously trying to avoid
duplicating the men s program
To this end, they have adopted a formal statement of philosophy to
guard against any regression during this period of change. The
women's program requires coaches be qualified as professional physi
Cdl oducators
In addition they maintain "there shall be no efforts to sway the
emphasis of the program from education to entertainment," and stu
dents should be given leadership roles in the organization and man
agement of the program.
Orntfon Duilv Rmerulri
Athletic trainers break male mold
By BRENDA TABOR
Of the Emerald
Women involved in the
University’s intercollegiate athle
tic program are among the first
female athletes to break into the
vestige of the male athletic train
ing program.
Although years passed before
athletic trainers and treatments
were made avalilble to women,
the facilities and services were
shared at the University before
Title IX mandated them equal ser
vices, facilities and equipment.
Giving women access to athle
tic trainers may have decreased
injuries previously attributed to
facilities in Geriinger Annex. Spec
ifically the concrete based floors
blamed for numerous "shin
splints," a catchall for leg injuries
of unknown cause, says Richard
Troxell, head women s athletic
trainer.
The floors in Gerlinger Annex,
used by Women's Intercollegiate
Athletics (WIA) weren’t designed
with accident prevention in mind,
he says.
“Last year at one point in the
season, we had 35 per cent of the
basketball players afflicted with
shin splint problems and three
knees that required surgery,” he
says.
But this year he embarked on a
conditioning program for all
women athletes and found leg in
juries greatly reduced with no
surgery required.
Conditioning as well as treat
ment, says Troxell, is an area trad
itionally neglected in women's ath
letics. He attributes a higher inci
dence of injuries in women to the
lack of proper conditioning.
Troxell says women are predis
posed to dislocated kneecaps be
cause of the high angulation of
their femurs.
But he says their injury rate and
response is no different from
men's. "On the whole, women ath
letes are easier to work with than
men," he adds.
Use of the facilities leapt by 40
per cent this year, he says, as
women became accustomed to
using the services provided.
Troxell prefers to work with the
women. He says they “tend not to
keep up the tough image like men,
and are more honest and open
about their injuries” — and
cooperative with long neglected
treatment.
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