[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5084-5085]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 CONGRATULATING THE BAYLOR UNIVERSITY LADY BEARS FOR WINNING THE 2012 
                       WOMEN'S NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Flores) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Coach Kim 
Mulkey and her Baylor University Lady Bears for winning the 2012 
women's NCAA college basketball national championship. The Lady Bears 
were ranked number one in the country all season long, going undefeated 
and becoming the first NCAA basketball team, men's or women's, to ever 
win 40 games in a season.
  The Lady Bears recorded some impressive team and individual 
accomplishments on their way to their second Final Four in 3 years and 
winning their second national championship in 7 years.
  The Lady Bear senior class, Terran Condrey, Ashley Field, and Lindsay 
Palmer, finished their 4-year careers with a record of 131 wins and 19 
losses, one national championship, two Final Four appearances, four 
NCAA tournament trips, two regular season Big 12 titles, and three Big 
12 tournament titles.
  Ashley Field, Lindsay Palmer, and Makenzie Robertson were all chosen 
as first team 2012 Academic All-Big 12 honorees. Odyssey Sims, Destiny 
Williams, and Brittney Griner were named to the 2011-2012 All-American 
team.
  After dominating opponents on both ends of the court all season long, 
Griner was chosen as the NCAA tournament MVP, and became the third 
women's basketball player to ever win all four National Player of the 
Year awards.
  The Lady Bears are led by the remarkable Head Coach Kim Mulkey, whose 
resume and accomplishments have already cemented her place among the 
best women's basketball coaches of all time. As a player, Coach Mulkey 
was a member of the 1984 gold medal winning U.S. women's basketball 
team. She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000 
and has been named Big 12 Coach of the Year three times. This year Kim 
was named National Coach of the Year.
  Coach Mulkey is the fastest women's basketball coach to ever reach 
300 wins

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and is the fifth coach in the NCAA to win multiple national 
championships. She has led the Lady Bears to the NCAA tournament in 11 
of her last 12 seasons at Baylor.
  The Lady Bears return their top six scorers and rebounders next 
season, so there is more to come from this outstanding group of young 
women.
  I am privileged to represent the city of Waco, McLennan County, and 
Baylor University in my district, and I wish best wishes to Baylor 
President Ken Starr, Athletic Director Ian McCaw, and everyone else at 
the Baylor Nation as they continue to show that a Christian institution 
of higher learning can, indeed, compete and win in college athletics as 
well.
  2011-2012 has truly been the year of the Bear. Sic 'em, Bears.

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