The 1979 WBL draft was the second annual draft of the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL). The draft was held in June, 1979, at the Hotel Roosevelt in New York City, New York, before the 1979–80 season.[1]
| 1979 WBL draft | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Date(s) | June, 1979 |
| Location | Hotel Roosevelt (New York City, New York) |
| Overview | |
| 143 total selections in 10 rounds | |
| League | WBL |
| Teams | 14 |
| First selection | Pat Colasurdo Mayo (San Francisco Pioneers) |
Unlike the previous year, the draft did not have a free agent draft but only a college phase of 1979 seniors. In total, 143 players were selected in ten rounds.[1][2]
Draft selections and draftee career notes edit
Pat Colasurdo Mayo from Montclair State University was selected first overall by the San Francisco Pioneers.[3]
Cindy Brogdon, who was selected second by the California Dreams, was traded to the New Orleans Pride prior to the start of the season after she had decided to return to school. She joined the Pride for the 1980–81 WBL season[4] where she averaged 14.7 points in 18 games and was named to the WBL All-Pro second team.[5]
Draft edit
| Pos. | G | F | C |
| Position | Guard | Forward | Center |
| ^ | Denotes player who has been inducted to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame |
| + | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game |
| x | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-WBL Team |
| # | Denotes player who has never appeared in an WBL regular season or playoff game |
| Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Pat Colasurdo Mayox | F |  United States
|
San Francisco Pioneers | Montclair State (Sr.) |
| 1 | 2 | Cindy Brogdon^ | United States
|
California Dreams | Tennessee (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 3 | Alfreda Abernathyx | United States
|
Dallas Diamonds | Alabama State (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 4 | Katrina Anderson | United States
|
Philadelphia Fox | South Carolina (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 5 | Bonnie Foley | United States
|
St. Louis Streak | Southern Illinois (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 6 | Maclean Harris | United States
|
Washington Metros | Alabama State (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 7 | Queen Brumfield[6] | United States
|
New Orleans Pride | Southeast Louisiana State (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 8 | Sharon Farrahx | United States
|
New York Stars (from New Jersey) | Missouri (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 9 | Carolyn Gamble | United States
|
Milwaukee Does | Shaw College (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 10 | Katrina Owens | United States
|
Minnesota Fillies | Arkansas State (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 11 | Pearl Moore^ | United States
|
New York Stars | Francis Marion College (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 12 | Retha Swindell | G | United States
|
Chicago Hustle | Texas Austin (Sr.) |
| 1 | 13 | Mo Eckroth[7] | United States
|
Iowa Cornets | Utah (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 14 | Nancy Kuhl | United States
|
Houston Angels | Penn State (Sr.) | |
| 1 | 15 | Kathy Miller | United States
|
Milwaukee Does | Weber State (Sr.) | |
| 2 | 16 | Kim Hansen | United States
|
San Francisco Pioneers | Grand Valley State (Sr.) | |
| 2 | 21 | Bertha Hardyx | United States
|
Washington Metros | Jackson State (Sr.) | |
| 3 | 30 | Anita Ortegax | United States
|
San Francisco Pioneers | UCLA (Sr.) |
References edit
- ^ a b Al Marvin (13 June 1979). "Jersey Woman No. 1 Pick". The New York Times. p. D22. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "WBL Draft". Olathe News. 13 June 1979. p. 7. Retrieved 10 March 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mike Rowan (13 June 1979). "Colasurdo 1st WBL pick". The Jersey Journal. p. 39. Retrieved 10 March 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ron Higgins (28 December 1980). "Brogdon better before a crowd". The Times. p. 3D. Retrieved 29 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "WPBL picks Rosie Walker best player". Omaha World-Herald. 9 May 1981. p. 24. Retrieved 16 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SLU's Brumfield, Williams picked". Enterprise-Journal. Association Press. 13 June 1979. p. 11. Retrieved 10 March 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Cornets select 5 Iowans in WBL draft". The Gazette. Associated Press. p. 1C. Retrieved 10 March 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
