Lucille Kyvallos (born 1932) is a former women's collegiate basketball coach. Kyvallos coached theQueens College women's basketball team from 1968 through 1981.[1] She is a member of the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame.[2] She served as chair for theAssociation for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW)'s basketball committee and tournament director for the AIAW national championship in 1973.[3] She coached the first women's college basketball game to be played atMadison Square Garden on February 22, 1975.[1][2] Kyvallos, an advocate for women's sports, wrote: "Women who achieve in sport add a new dimension to the role of women in American society."[4]
Kyvallos was born inAstoria, Queens.[1][5] She played in recreational basketball leagues growing up, and despite being a strong player, has noted that the lack of opportunity for girls meant she wasn't able to "play on a girls high school or intercollegiate team or [in] the Olympics."[1] Kyvallos attended Springfield College and graduated in 1955.[6] She went on to study atIndiana University for her master's degree inPhysical Education.[7][1]
Kyvallos coachedWest Chester University's women's basketball team from 1962 to 1966. In her last season with the team, they achieved a 10–0 record.[8] In 1966 Kyvallos started at Queens College, becoming the women's basketball coach in 1968. During her tenure as coach, her Queens College team became a model for the development of high school girls' basketball in New York City and Long Island.[2] As coach, she trained prominent figures in women's basketball, includingDonna Orender andGail Marquis.[2] Other players went on to play professional basketball as well, such asAlthea Gwyn andDebbie Mason, or to make an impact in collegiate athletics, such asSharon Beverly.[9][10][11][12][13] Kyvallos led the Queens College team to win the National Collegiate Basketball Championship.[4] Her team played in an historic 1975 game againstImmaculata College, as it was the first women's college basketball game held at Madison Square Garden.[8][2][1]
Kyvallos coached the USA women's basketball team at the 1977World University Games inSofia, Bulgaria.[4][8][14] She led the team to win a silver medal, losing in the final to the USSR.[8][14]
In all her coaching endeavors, Kyvallos prioritized strategy and skill building.[1][8] She emphasized teamwork and confidence, breaking outside of gender roles of the time and advocating for equality between women's and men's teams.[1][2][8]
Kyvallos was selected as Lady Champion's 1976 Coach of The Year and named "The Coach You Would Want to Play For" byWomenSports in 1977.[4]
Kyvallos' 1972–1973 team was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame, an honor that she shares.[1][2] Queens College inducted her into its Athletics Hall of Fame, and renamed the college's basketball court after her, making it the first basketball court in New York City to be named after a woman.[1][2] The court is noted in theNYC LGBT Historic Sites Project.[2] She was also inducted in Springfield College's Athletics Hall of Fame and the West Chester State College Hall of Fame.[6][8] Kyvallos will be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2025.
Kyvallos won the Joe Lapchick Character Award in 2015.[1][6]
Kyvallos was featured in an exhibit at theMuseum of the City of New York from March 2020 through January 2021.[5]