Althea Gwyn
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 19, 1956 |
| Nationality | American |
| Career information | |
| High school | Amityville Memorial High School (Long Island, New York) |
| College | Queens College |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Althea Regina Gwyn[1] (May 19, 1956 – January 9, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who was one of the first players in the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL).[2][3]
Early life and education
Gwyn started her basketball career at Amityville Memorial High School on Long Island.[2][4] She went on to play at Queens College, playing on February 22, 1975, in the first women's college basketball game to ever be held at Madison Square Garden.[2][3][5] She achieved All-American status in 1978 and was a leading rebounder while at Queens College.[2][3]
Gwyn played for the USA Women's Team in the 1977 World University Games, under her Queens College coach Lucille Kyvallos.[6]
Career
After a brief stint playing amateur basketball in Belgium, Gwyn returned to the United States to play for the New York Stars, a team in the WBL.[3][4] She chose the WBL over the chance to play for the 1980 Olympic Team.[2][4] Gwyn later played for the league's New England Gulls.[2]
Gwyn went on to be inducted into the Queens College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013, and was named a Trailblazer of basketball by the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.[3]
After retiring from professional sports, Gwyn worked for the fire department of Fayetteville, North Carolina.[7]
References
- ^ "Althea Regina Gwyn () - Basketball Stats, Height, Age". FIBA Basketball. Retrieved 8 November 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f Baker, Tee (2022-01-17). "Remembering Queens College and WBL legend Althea Gwyn". The Next. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
- ^ a b c d e "Queens College Athletics Mourns The Passing of Women's Basketball Hall of Famer Althea Gwyn". Queens College. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
- ^ a b c Harvin, Al (1979-01-07). "Althea Gwyn Finds Pro Game Suits Her". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
- ^ Araton, Harvey (2015-01-02). "A First at the Garden Earns an Encore". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
- ^ "NINTH WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES -- 1977". www.usab.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2015. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
- ^ "Althea Gwyn". Queens College. Retrieved 2023-04-17.