Michelle Marciniak - University of Notre Dame and University of Tennessee

University of Notre Dame and University of Tennessee

After a year at the University of Notre Dame, Marciniak transferred to the University of Tennessee, where she quickly became a leader of the dominant University of Tennessee Lady Vols women's basketball team under head coach Pat Summitt. Summitt had recruited her in high school and in fact, went into labor as she was sitting in the Marciniak's home on a recruiting trip. Summitt quickly wrapped up the visit and flew back to Knoxville to give birth to her son, Tyler. "Spinderella" as Marciniak was affectionately known because of her free wheeling, spinning and slashing style, became a crowd favorite at Tennessee. She scored over 1,000 points and still is in Tennessee's top ten all-time in assists and three-point scoring, after only three years of play.

With Marciniak at point guard, the Lady Vols won consecutive Southeastern Conference championships in 1995 and 1996. In the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship, Tennessee came in second to the Connecticut Huskies in 1995. The next season, Tennessee wasn't expected to be as strong, but lost just four games during the regular season and eventually returned to the Final Four, where the Lady Vols earned a rematch with UConn. Marciniak led the team to an 88-83 overtime victory, then avenged an earlier loss to Georgia to claim Tennessee's fourth national championship. During the season, Marciniak became the focused leader and played a methodical style of basketball that Pat Summitt demanded from her point guards. Marciniak was chosen the Final Four's Most Valuable Player for her inspired play. She graduated in 1996 with a degree in psychology.