Laurie Pirtle stood in awe of the names and retired numbers of the all-time great University of Cincinnati basketball players on display above Ed Jucker Court inside Fifth Third Arena.
Pirtle told The Enquirer in February that it would be an honor to one day be mentioned in the same breath as Cheryl Cook (No. 24), Kenyon Martin (No. 4), Jack Twyman (No. 27) and Oscar Robertson (No. 12).
"Look. Turn around. Look," said Pirtle, gesturing to the Bearcats basketball royalty hanging above her. "To be in that group, and to be in that group among all the sports and all the coaches and all the contributors here at UC, forget about it. It would be tremendous. It would be humbling."
Pirtle is now in that group.
Pirtle, the winningest women's basketball coach in Cincinnati Bearcats history, will headline the 2022 UC Athletics Hall of Fame class, the school's athletic department announced Thursday.
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the landmark federal law that prohibits gender discrimination in educational programs and activities, the 2022 class will be the first to feature all women and will include Jacqueline Keire (swimming and diving), Kathy Klump (track and field), Laura Lauder (volleyball) and Pirtle.
“We are thrilled to honor these Bearcats legends,” UC Director of Athletics John Cunningham said. “From the track to the courts and the pool, these women proved to be the best of the best during their collegiate careers at the University of Cincinnati. They serve as shining examples for our current student-athletes of how hard work can lead to success, and what it means to be a Bearcat for life.”
Pirtle, who retired in 2007, won 310 games in 21 seasons at the helm of the Cincinnati women's basketball program. Only former UC men's basketball coach Bob Huggins (399) has more wins at the school.
Pirtle's Bearcats had eight losing records in her first 10 seasons.
"My first team bought their own shoes and they were called Kangaroos," Pirtle said in 2007. "I slept in rest stops to recruit. We played in the (Armory) Fieldhouse and I had a $5,000 recruiting budget."
But then that all changed.
Beginning in 1996-97, Pirtle’s teams had seven straight winning seasons, advancing to the NCAA Tournament three times and receiving four invitations to the women’s NIT.
Keire was a three-time All-American for the Bearcats in 2015, '16 and '17. She qualified for the NCAA Championships all four years of her career and was a three-time American Athletic Conference Most Outstanding Swimmer honoree. Keire also won a gold medal for Team Canada at the 2017 World University Games.
Klump was a three-time All-American and four-time Big East Conference champion middle-distance runner for the Bearcats track and field team from 2008 to 2012. She earned First Team All-America accolades in 2012 by placing fourth in the 800-meter run at the NCAA Indoor Championship and sixth in the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Klump was the 2012 Big East Most Outstanding Indoor Track Performer.
Lauder was a three-time all-conference setter, who finished her career (2000-03) 10th in NCAA history in assists per game (13.87 in the 30-point scoring format). She finished first in the UC record book in career assists (5,946) and helped the Bearcats to a pair of conference championships and four NCAA Tournament appearances.
Pirtle, Keire, Klump and Lauder will be inducted at the 21st Annual Legion of Excellence Gala on Sept. 23 at Fifth Third Arena.