Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer won her 1,099th game as a head coach on Tuesday night, passing Hall of Famer and former Tennessee coach Pat Summitt and setting the record for the most wins by a coach in women’s college basketball history.
VanDerveer, 67, led the Cardinal to a 104-61 win at Pacific, finally reaching a milestone that scheduling changes due to COVID-19 had repeatedly pushed back. VanDerveer is in her 42nd season as a head coach. She spent two seasons at Idaho from 1978-80 before taking over Ohio State for five seasons and moving to Stanford in 1985.
“This is special because of, I think, the magnitude of that many wins,” VanDerveer said. “Like, you never go into coaching — I’ve never thought, ‘Well, I’m going to try to win 1,000 games,’ or anything like that. This is special. I mean, having currently the No. 1 team, being undefeated, playing in a pandemic — I will never forget this, for sure.”
To add context to VanDerveer’s accomplishment, The Athletic spoke to several of her former players, across nearly every one of her seasons as a head coach, about what they learned from her and the memories they carry with them.
What is a lesson VanDerveer taught you that has resonated beyond your college years?
Amy Tucker (Ohio State, 1978-82; Stanford…
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