Aggie Women in Athletics

Women students organized a baseball team in 1898 and a competitive basketball team in 1901.  Since no organized collegiate sports for women existed at the time, USU women’s teams played exclusively against local rivals, such as Brigham Young College. In 1953, women students began participating in USU’s spirit squad – the “Aggiettes.”  In truth, however, intramural athletics remained the only outlet for women interested in team and individual sports competition for much of USU’s early history.

In 1972, President Richard Nixon signed the landmark legislation “Title IX,” mandating equality in college athletic programs for men and women. In 1975, USU hired Women’s Athletics Director Marilyn Weiss to establish the first women’s collegiate athletic program. Within two years, the 1978 women’s volleyball team won the NCAA championship, becoming the first, and only, USU team to win a national championship.