[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 59 (Friday, April 11, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H3335-H3339]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            CONGRATULATING UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT HUSKIES

  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on Education and the Workforce be discharged from further consideration 
of the resolution, (H. Res. 187) congratulating the University of 
Connecticut Huskies for winning the 2003 National Collegiate Athletic 
Association Division I women's basketball championship, and ask for its 
immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from Connecticut?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 187

       Whereas the University of Connecticut Huskies women's 
     basketball team won its third National Collegiate Athletic 
     Association championship in 4 years by defeating the 
     University of Tennessee by the score of 73-68;
       Whereas, after losing 4 All-American players to graduation, 
     the Huskies were still able to finish the 2002-2003 season 
     with a nearly perfect 37-1 record, becoming only the 3rd NCAA 
     Division I women's basketball team to repeat as national 
     champions;
       Whereas Diana Taurasi was chosen as the consensus national 
     women's Player of the Year and named the Final Four Most 
     Outstanding Player;
       Whereas the University of Connecticut Huskies set an NCAA 
     Division I women's record by winning 70 games in a row;
       Whereas University of Connecticut Huskies head coach Geno 
     Auriemma was named NCAA Division I women's basketball Coach 
     of the Year, won his 501st game and 4th National 
     Championship;
       Whereas the high caliber of the University of Connecticut 
     Huskies in both athletics and academics has significantly 
     advanced the sport of women's basketball and provided 
     inspiration for future generations of young men and women 
     alike; and
       Whereas the University of Connecticut Huskies' championship 
     season has rallied Connecticut residents of all ages behind a 
     common purpose and triggered a wave of euphoria across the 
     State: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives commends the 
     University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team for 
     winning the 2003 National Collegiate Athletic Association 
     Division I women's basketball championship and for completing 
     the 2002-2003 season with a 37-1 record.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) 
is recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield the 
customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), 
pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today and to join all of my Connecticut 
colleagues to honor the 2003 NCAA Women's Basketball Champion, the 
University of Connecticut Huskies. This resolution congressionally 
recognizes a group of young women who have excelled both on and off the 
court. Connecticut is incredibly proud of them.
  This is the University of Connecticut's second consecutive basketball 
championship, only the third time an NCAA women's basketball team has 
ever repeated as national champions.
  Led by the NCAA Player of the Year, Diana Taurasi, the Huskies capped 
a 37 and 1 season by beating the University of Tennessee Tuesday 
tonight, 73 to 68. All of the State of Connecticut watched with pride 
as the Huskies claimed their place as the repeat national champions.
  The University of Connecticut was founded in 1881 and has a rich 
history of providing educational and athletic opportunities to 
undergraduates of diverse interests, abilities, and backgrounds. It is 
with great joy, Mr. Speaker, that as a former teaching assistant at the 
University of Connecticut I take the floor today to say way to go, 
Huskies.
  I wanted to congratulate Diana Taurasi, Maria Conlon, Ann Strother, 
Jessica Moore, and Barbara Turner. But do not forget the other players 
on the team who contributed so much to the success and overall efforts 
of the team: Ashley Battle, Willnet Crocket, Stacey Marron, Nicole 
Wolff, Ashley Valley, and Morgan Valley. And a special ``way to go'' 
goes to Head coach Geno Auriemma, associate head coach Chris Dailey, 
Tonya Cardoza, and Jamelle Elliot, athletic director Lew Perkins, and 
the parents of all of the members of this national championship team. 
And finally to my friend, UCONN president Philip Austin, and his 
administration for fielding such a fine team of scholar-athletes.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I want to thank the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), my 
colleague from the Connecticut delegation, for introducing this 
resolution honoring the Huskies for their fourth NCAA women's 
basketball championship and their third and fourth seasons. An 
extraordinary group of young women.
  This year's victory is especially inspirational because the Huskies 
overcame incredible odds this year, to repeat with only one starting 
player returning from last year's championship team. They are the first 
women's basketball team in history to win a national championship 
without a single senior on the roster and only the third to win back-
to-back championships. With this title victory against the mighty 
Tennessee Vols, and I might just say to my colleague from Tennessee 
that we honor today these young women for their competitive spirit and 
their heart, our Huskies are certain to be remembered as one of the 
greatest basketball teams in sports history.
  The people of Connecticut are tremendously proud of their Huskies, 
who have set an example for all us with their teamwork and with their 
standard for perfection. Though this victory was a team effort, as the 
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) has said, and he listed the 
names of all of the members of the team, I just want to make particular 
mention of guards Maria Conlon, who is from Derby, Connecticut, and I 
represent Derby, Connecticut. It is in the third congressional 
district. And Diana Taurasi, a fellow daughter of Italian immigrants 
who scored 28 points on her way to being named the Final Four Most 
Outstanding Player and Consensus National Player of the year. Diana was 
nothing less than dominating. She scored the third-most points in 
Division I tournament history, the fourth most-ever in the Final Four, 
and tied for the second most-ever in a title game. She did this all 
with an aching back, one good ankle, and a heart whose size is only 
matched by that of the Huskies' dreams and their determination.
  The game of women's basketball has changed since the days when women 
in my generation played it on only a half court, and I did that for 4 
years at the Academy of Our Lady of Mercy Laurelton Hall in Milford, 
Connecticut. I am sure that in the days when my mother played, and she 
did, and my mother is 89 years old, but she played in the leagues when 
they had them in New Haven, Connecticut, women's leagues all those 
years ago, but no one dreamed at that time that women would one day 
play before a national audience of millions. The game may have changed, 
but the need to get young girls involved in sports has not.
  Without question, the Huskies have illustrated for us that the 
results of Congress's commitment and my colleagues' commitment through 
title IX, that when given the resources, women are just as talented and 
as exciting to watch as any men's team that is out there. Women now 
constitute 40 percent of college athletes compared to the 15 percent 30 
years ago before title IX became law. As evidenced by the trailblazing 
UCONN Huskies, the values that women learn from sports participation, 
leadership, teamwork, discipline, pride and accomplishment are 
irreplaceable. Today's athletic successes help us to increase our 
participation in tomorrow's workforce, like the number of business 
management and ownership positions. In fact, 80 percent of female 
managers of Fortune 500 companies have a sports background. There may 
be a future Fortune 500 executive on the Huskies right now.
  Either way, one cannot deny that participation in athletics has given 
women many of the tools they need for

[[Page H3336]]

success. Because of their hard work, absolute determination, and a 
commitment to teamwork on and off the court, these talented young women 
will be remembered as we debate title IX and its impact on the women in 
this country. They will be the image in our minds of women reaching for 
their dreams and succeeding.
  The UCONN Huskies have set a new standard of excellence that teams in 
the future will strive to match. They achieved perfection, and they 
have inspired all of us.
  Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the Huskies on their championship win and 
on their incredible season. They have once again earned our recognition 
and respect. Let's go, Huskies.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from the 
second district of Tennessee (Mr. Duncan).
  Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. 
Simmons) for yielding me this time.
  I will not take the full 5 minutes, but I do rise in the spirit of 
good sportsmanship that we see exhibited in our wonderful system of 
collegiate athletics on almost a daily basis to offer credit where 
credit is due and congratulate the great women's basketball team at the 
University of Connecticut on their victory over my own hometown Lady 
Vols.
  I have had the privilege on two occasions of being Pat Summit's 
honorary assistant coach, and my collegiate coaching record is two and 
zero, I am proud to say, because Coach Summit has been certainly one of 
the most outstanding coaches in the history of basketball, having led 
her teams to six national championships. But certainly our number one 
rival in women's basketball has been the great teams and program that 
Coach Geno Auriemma has established and built at the University of 
Connecticut. And those University of Connecticut women certainly showed 
in every way that not only were they talented athletes but they were 
wonderful young women as well and outstanding examples for young people 
all over this Nation.

                              {time}  1330

  Unfortunately, I do wish that I was on the other side of this 
resolution and that I was offering it, and that my friend the gentleman 
from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) was up congratulating me. I do now, 
unfortunately, owe him some Tennessee country ham and some honey, that 
I will bring following the recess.
  Mr. Speaker, I will simply end by saying once again, congratulations 
to a really outstanding team and also by saying, wait until next year.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for his 
remarks and to extend our commendations to his team. It was a tough 
game, it was a tight game, it was an exciting game. I had promised that 
if we came up short I would give him an evening's supply of our fine 
Mystic Pizza from Mystic, Connecticut. Fortunately I do not have to do 
that. But I look forward to getting some of that fine Tennessee ham.
  Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield further, I did 
say some good things about Pat Summitt; and I do want to say that I am 
really very, very proud of my Lady Vols, because coming in second in 
the entire Nation is really a great, great accomplishment. I wish we 
were number one, but number two is not bad at all, and I am very, very 
proud of my hometown Lady Vols.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I just say to my colleague from Tennessee, who has an 
office across from mine in the Rayburn Building, that our staffs had a 
wager, and they have been gracious in making sure that we were the 
recipients of the goodness of the State of Tennessee and the district.
  As I said in my comments, it is wonderful and marvelous to watch 
these young women, whether they are the Huskies or the Lady Vols, just 
play their hearts out. I think it is a tremendous tribute to them and 
to what they do in terms of their leadership of our country, now and 
for the future. We are proud of the Lady Vols as well, and I thank my 
colleague.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson).
  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the 
opportunity to speak on this.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the outstanding 
accomplishments of the University of Connecticut women's basketball 
team, who defeated the University of Tennessee Volunteers 73 to 68 to 
win the NCAA tournament on April 8, 2030.
  These young women demonstrated throughout their season an ability to 
focus, to maintain effort even when losing, to work as a team and to 
hone their individual skills that was truly inspiring, month after 
month.
  That much said, the Lady Vols did a fantastic job as well, and 
Connecticut admires and respects their skill and ability each year.
  I would note that without title IX, none of these young women would 
have had the opportunity to develop into world class athletes.
  I would like to offer, as well, special congratulations to head coach 
Geno Auriemma, who won his second consecutive national title. After 
losing four senior starters last year, junior Diana Taurasi took 
control of the team and led them to victory, scoring 28 points herself.
  Mr. Speaker, these extraordinary young women do not need me to tell 
them they are champions or that their accomplishments are appreciated. 
This year was supposed to be a year of rebuilding, but the Huskies were 
not going to rest on their laurels. Over the past years, they have only 
lost one game.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to point out that the outstanding 
achievements of this team offer a fine example to our Nation's young 
people. We can rise to incredible heights if we are able to combine 
individual excellence of skill and dedication with the communication 
and overarching commitment to shared goals that the small word 
``teamwork'' denotes.
  I applaud the UCONN Huskies for their remarkable achievements, both 
on and off the court, individually and as a team. We are proud of each 
one of you, and of our UCONN Huskies.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson).
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank my dear friend and 
colleague for yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, I am amazed that I learn something every time I come to 
this floor. I have always known of the gentlewoman's great tenacity and 
ability to put on a full court press, but I had never known that she 
was a basketball player before, and clearly am astonished to learn that 
her mom was a basketball player as well, although certainly she was in 
the center of her life and a point guard in the women's movement in 
Connecticut.
  I am honored, as well, to be joined by my colleagues from 
Connecticut, and want to especially thank the gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) for organizing this. The University of 
Connecticut at Storrs is in the heart of the Second Congressional 
District. I thank, of course, the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. 
Johnson) for joining us as well.
  The University of Connecticut's women's basketball team is special to 
the State of Connecticut. They are virtually embraced by all of our 
citizens, and there has been a love affair in the State of Connecticut 
with this team. As most of you and everyone knows, throughout the 
Northeast the winters can get pretty severe, and this was no exception. 
But the Huskies, both the men's and women's teams, bring extraordinary 
delight into people's homes all across the State of Connecticut.
  We, day in and day out, have the best fans anywhere in the United 
States, as witnessed by sellout after sellout after sellout of our 
games, and it is because of the extraordinary program that has been put 
together at the University of Connecticut.
  So, along with the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson) and the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), I want to give the tribute that rightfully 
belongs to Geno Auriemma and his entire coaching staff, Lew Perkins, 
and President Austin for the outstanding job they have done at the 
University of Connecticut.

[[Page H3337]]

  I would also like to point out that this was a special final four, 
and, as both the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro) and the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson) have pointed out, 
underscored by the importance of those that are thinking about changing 
title IX. So, in many respects, though the University of Connecticut 
Huskies walked off the court victorious, the real winners were women's 
athletics and its importance.
  I say that because I think that there is a unique purity about this 
game and those that watch athletic competition. I liken it to baseball 
in the 1950s and 1960s. For sports enthusiasts and purists who watched 
the women's final four and got to see Duke and Tennessee and 
Connecticut and Texas, and then the final game between Connecticut and 
Tennessee, you saw athleticism, sportsmanship, camaraderie and 
gamesmanship at its very best, something certainly that we all can be 
proud of and something that I know, having two girls and a son at home, 
that by watching that kind of play are inspired and get to dream the 
big dreams that the Lady Vols and the University of Connecticut Huskies 
have dreamt.
  For UCONN it was a tremendous victory. I sincerely hope that Geno and 
Kathy and their family get to really live this moment, because for the 
coach and for Chris Dailey and all of the assistant coaches, a three-
peat is already expected of them.
  Their accomplishments are legendary. They set a national record for 
consecutive victories this year by winning 70 games in a row, they won 
76 of 77 games on their way to their second national championship, and 
they beat every ranked team along the way. As was pointed out, this was 
done for the first time by a team of all underclassmen.
  In Connecticut we like to say that the Supremes had Diana Ross, 
certainly the British had Princess Diana, but in Connecticut, we have 
D, Diana Taurasi, simply the best basketball player in the country. 
Throughout this past week people from West Virginia have been coming up 
to me and talking about how she reminds them of Jerry West; and people 
from Indiana have been coming up and saying how she reminds them of 
Larry Byrd. And we had Sue Byrd last year, who was not a bad player 
either; but Diana Taurasi is in a class of her own.
  They say a team is an extension of its coach, and certainly this team 
is the personification of Geno Auriemma, of his spirit, his style, his 
manner of coaching. He does so with class. Geno Auriemma won his 500th 
game against the University of Texas and his 501st against Tennessee, 
and his remarks on beating Tennessee were a tribute to Pat Summitt and 
the Lady Vols, saying that they had beat the best women's basketball 
program in the country, and Tennessee arguably was playing the best 
basketball of any team in the tournament at that point. Of course, Pat 
Summitt's credits are legendary as well.
  This is a rivalry that has been established and will continue for 
some time to come, but it is one, I think, that again highlights the 
importance of making sure that people all across this country get to 
see women's athletics played out on a national stage with all the 
excitement, drama and athleticism that this competition has brought to 
the country.
  I would also point out that what makes us so proud of our Huskies is 
that, as extraordinary as they are on the court, they are equally 
extraordinary off the court, not only academically, in the classroom, 
but as ambassadors.
  I would be remiss if I did not mention the outstanding success of the 
Big East throughout this tournament. Our colleagues from New York, of 
course, are very proud of the Syracuse team that went on to win the 
national championship; and our men's team, again going to the Sweet 16, 
and also being joined by three other teams, and, of course, the 
eventual winner, Syracuse.
  I know New York and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks), if he is 
still within earshot and is listening, is proud of the great job that 
St. John's did in winning the NIT; and I know that the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Murtha) was somewhat chagrined that Pitt did not make 
it all the way. But nonetheless, nonetheless, it was a stellar 
achievement on the part of the Big East. Geno Auriemma, again, pointed 
that out.
  So I am very proud to stand with my colleagues here today and pay 
tribute to the University of Connecticut and their outstanding women's 
basketball team. They are a credit to their families, to their 
university, to our great State of Connecticut and to the entire Nation.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), a gentleman who is himself a great basketball 
player and distinguishes himself on the court in congressional play.
  Mr. WAMP. Mr. Speaker, certainly I thank the authors of this 
resolution for coming to the floor today, just a few hours after there 
was significant rancor and division, to a point of unity here, to 
recognize the best in college athletics.

                              {time}  1345

  There is no doubt that Geno and Diana and the entire UConn team 
deserve the national championship, one of the greatest games I think in 
the history of women's basketball, certainly the two most prominent 
programs in the land. And as a basketball player myself, and I 
appreciate the compliment, but great is a relative term, and the older 
I get, the better I used to be. That is the way most of us are.
  The best lessons I have learned in my life were in the game of 
basketball. Sports are very important at every level. Also, I am the 
chairman of the Congressional Fitness Caucus, and it is important that 
we promote physical activity and to see the example of these female 
college athletes, the heart that they have, the dignity that their 
coach displayed, in victory and, a long time ago, in defeat. It has 
been a long time since the UConn Lady Huskies have not had a good year. 
It is really incredible.
  I just have to tell my colleagues, I am a Lady Vols fan, rooted for 
them, so proud of our program. But I tell my colleagues, this was a 
very special team and a very special year for a great bunch of ladies. 
And to see Geno, I watched every minute of the game and watched Geno's 
comments, and for him to even hail the proud Italian heritage that we 
saw demonstrated in the heart and soul, just the hustle, the 
determination.
  Of course, Tennessee played their hearts out as well: Karen, the 
Jacksons, incredible female athletes.
  This game of women's basketball is one of the fastest moving sports 
climbs in the history of this country. There is excitement filling up 
the greatest domes in the country with sports fans and enthusiasts of 
all shapes and sizes and ages. It is just really good that women's 
sports are doing so well. And boy, the apex I think of the competition 
was the University of Connecticut's victory for the national 
championship.
  So I applaud my colleagues. In a time of unity today on the House 
floor, we can come and praise this dedication. It is just wonderful 
that physical exercise and athletic competition can bring out the best 
in people, both physically and mentally, because I think that there is 
a tremendous respect between Pat Summit and Geno and the greatest 
coaches in the land in female sports. It is great for women's 
basketball that these two teams made it all the way to that final game. 
I do not know what the ratings were, but they had to be high; and I 
know many of my colleagues were glued to the television that night as 
they knew the two most successful programs in women's basketball had 
made it to the final game of the national championship. They played 
their hearts out, and my hat is off to the Connecticut Huskies. They 
deserved to win, they deserve to be champions, and they are true 
champions with dignity. They have the respect of every person, I think, 
in this country.
  So this brings out the best in America where two good teams compete 
and the best team won. So congratulations, Connecticut. We will see you 
next year.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments, for 
his sportsmanship, and for his encouragement of physical fitness among 
those of us who serve here in Congress. He is a terrific leader in that 
regard.
  Seeing no further speakers on my side, I would ask my colleague if 
she would like to close.

[[Page H3338]]

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, and I do have someone 
else who would like to speak, another colleague. I just want to say to 
my colleague from Connecticut (Mr. Larson) I had no idea that he 
aspired to sports commentary. We have talked about Maryland and 
Missouri and Texas, but we have to deal with California as well.
  But the long and the short of it, I yield such time as he may consume 
to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Jones).
  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut for yielding, and I congratulate her and 
the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) for hosting this 
resolution for congratulations for UConn.
  I rise to celebrate the coaches and the rest of the team. But I rise 
in support of Barbara Turner. Barbara Turner is my constituent. She 
attended East Technical High School in the 11th Congressional District 
of Ohio, which is Cleveland. I watched her play basketball in high 
school. My son Mervyn graduated at the same time she did; he is a 
basketball player as well, and I wish I could say their school was 
doing as good as UConn. I cannot. But I am so pleased to join with all 
of my colleagues in celebrating UConn.
  I want to just close with two things. Is it not wonderful to see how 
well we are doing with this program as a result of the strong support 
of title IX? It is time for us to stand up and continue to support a 
successful program. It is time for us to stand up and continue to 
support another successful program in colleges and universities: 
affirmative action. I would just ask my colleagues across this country 
to think about how great those programs are.
  Finally, I invite my colleagues to Cleveland, Ohio, in 2007 for the 
women's NCAA finals. I am the Chair of that event. Come on to 
Cleveland, and we will celebrate another victory.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers, if the 
gentlewoman wishes to close; and then I will close.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I will take my colleague up on the trip to 
Cleveland.
  Mr. Speaker, I am reluctant to do this, but my colleague from 
Connecticut (Mr. Larson) has asked for a minute, so I yield 1 minute to 
the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson).
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
yielding me this time. I would feel remiss, with the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Wamp) taking most of the time here, that I did not get 
an opportunity to mention that the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Ford) 
had also been involved in a wager, far more dramatic, I might point 
out, I say to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), than the 
paultry ham that you were able to get. The gentleman from Tennessee 
(Mr. Ford) had committed that the Tennessee delegation, working through 
the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), was going to get us a new wing 
at the University of Connecticut; and we want to greatly thank him for 
that as well.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I yield to the gentleman from Connecticut.
  Mr. SIMMONS. That is not ham. That would be what?
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Pork.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, we have a rally going here. I yield 1 
minute to the gentleman from Washington State (Mr. Inslee).
  (Mr. INSLEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Speaker, we just wanted, from the State of 
Washington, from the University of Washington Huskies, to congratulate 
the Connecticut Huskies on this tremendous achievement. I just want to 
tell my colleagues, it is a particular personal satisfaction to see 
women's basketball so successful nationally.
  My dad was the athletic director for the Seattle public schools in 
the 1970s when we were starting to break these barriers to fight the 
sort of coaches of the boys' team to get them to share the gym. This 
was a very controversial effort to get some of these old codgers to see 
the light to share the gym, and it is really satisfying to see this 
tremendous satisfaction. I hope we can work together to make sure that 
our title IX continues to protect the wonderful growth of women's 
athletics. Congratulations.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I think it is absolutely clear that we do have to work together and 
we will work together to make sure that we preserve title IX.
  In closing, I want to thank the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. 
Simmons) for bringing this resolution to the floor. We all 
wholeheartedly congratulate the number one NCAA women's team in the 
country, the UConn Huskies.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the remaining time.
  In closing, I would like to say that my colleague, the gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Shays), was unavailable for this colloquy and to speak 
to this resolution because he is chairing a committee at this time; but 
I suspect he will submit comments for the Record.
  I would also like to point out that one of the things that I have 
always admired about the UConn Huskies as a basketball team was the 
fact that when we look at their jerseys, and I have a T-shirt in front 
of me that commemorates their great victory this year, but when you 
look at their jerseys as they play, you will not see the players' names 
on the jerseys. You will only see the name of UConn, University of 
Connecticut. I think that that is important because what it shows is 
that in spite of the tremendous talent of the members of this team and 
the tremendous talent of all of the members of this team, they play as 
a team, not as individuals. And even somebody like Diana Taurasi, who 
is so talented, so gifted, who plays such a marvelous game of 
basketball, but she plays as part of the team, and the team does so 
well for those reasons.
  Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, my constituents and all of Connecticut 
congratulate the University of Connecticut Lady Huskies for winning the 
2003 NCAA Women's Basketball Championship.
  Last year, I stood on this same floor to congratulate the 2002 
championship squad, which I felt was the greatest team in the history 
of women's college basketball. That 39-0 team never trailed in the 
second half all season. During the NCAA tournament, they won their six 
games by an average margin of 27 points.
  Going into this season, the Lady Huskies had lost four All-American 
players to graduation. Without their senior leadership, many questioned 
whether the team would be able to win a third national championship in 
just 4 years.
  But UConn women's basketball has always been a program rich in 
tradition and a desire to excel. Quite simply, they would not be 
denied.
  Led by junior Diana Taurasi, the national women's player of the year, 
a pair of freshmen sensations, Barbara Turner and Ann Strother, and the 
unyielding dedication of teammates Maria Conlon, Jessica Moore, Ashley 
Battle, Nicole Wolff, Morgan and Ashley Valley, Wilnett Crockett and 
Stacey Marron, the UConn Lady Huskies again finished the season as the 
finest team in the land.
  I also want to commend the hard work of Geno Auriemma, the NCAA Coach 
of the Year, who along with his coaching staff put together another 
unbelievable team. With the championship victory, Coach Auriemma won 
his 501st game and fourth national championship.
  Mr. Speaker, this team's speed, precision shooting, and hustle have 
all contributed to its success. But what strikes me the most about the 
Lady Huskies is their ability to rise to any occasion.
  In the semifinal game, UConn was down 50-41 with 12 minutes left 
against the University of Texas Longhorns. All game long Texas had 
stunned the Lady Huskies with its strong rebounding and intense 
defense. But the Lady Huskies settled down and received a spark off the 
bench from Wilnett Crockett. In two of the greatest final minutes of 
women's Final Four history, the Lady Huskies found a way to win. They 
hit key shots and shut down the Longhorns on their way to a hard-fought 
71-69 victory and a ticket to the national championship game.
  By the time the Lady Huskies met the Lady Vols of Tennessee in the 
title game, they could taste victory. Against the most successful 
women's basketball program in NCAA history, UConn never trailed 
throughout the game. The result was a 73-68 victory!
  I want to congratulate these young women for being such extraordinary 
role models for Americans of all ages.
  These UConn Lady Huskies continue to be the team by which all others 
are measured.

[[Page H3339]]

They were really a joy to watch, and I congratulate them on their 
tremendous achievement.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I 
move the previous question on the resolution.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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