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TO CONGRATULATE PEARL MOORE OF FLORENCE ON THE OCCASION ON HER INDUCTION INTO THE NATIONAL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME, CLASS OF 2011.
Whereas, the House of Representatives was pleased to learn that 1979 Francis Marion University graduate Pearl Moore of Florence was inducted into the National Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee, on June 11, 2011; and
Whereas, Ms. Moore, a native of Florence, is the all-time career-scoring leader for women's college basketball. Between 1975 and 1979, the four-time All-American scored 4,061 points. For eleven years, she held the scoring record for both men and women; and
Whereas, Pearl Moore started her collegiate career at Anderson Junior College in the fall of 1975. After one semester at Anderson (eight games and 177 points), she transferred to Francis Marion University (FMU). Fortunately, the Patriots did not open their cage season until after the first of the year, and thus Ms. Moore played the entire 1975-76 Francis Marion schedule. At that time under Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) rules, a player could transfer and be eligible immediately; and
Whereas, the 5' 7" guard-forward went on to score 3,884 points in a Patriot uniform. Her career point total includes the points scored at Anderson, because at that time in women's basketball, two- and four-year schools regularly competed against each other and all results counted; and
Whereas, during her junior year, she scored a new single-game record 60 points in a 114-71 victory over Eastern Washington State College in the 1978 AIAW Small College National Tournament. In her final collegiate game, March 10, 1979, in an AIAW Small College Regional Tournament consolation game against the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, she scored 42 points to break the previous all-time record of 4,045 set by Travis Grant of Kentucky State University. She was a final nominee for the 1978 Wade trophy and was named 1979 South Carolina Amateur Athlete of the Year; and
Whereas, Pearl Moore averaged 30.6 points per game over her four seasons (127 games) at Francis Marion and helped lead head coach Sylvia Hatchell's program to an 85-42 record and three national tournament appearances. She scored below 20 points only eighteen times in her Francis Marion career and reached the 50-point mark on three occasions. She scored 1,109 points in her junior year alone; and
Whereas, in addition to her point total, recorded in an era that did not have the three-point field goal, Ms. Moore grabbed 1,270 rebounds and shot 45.9 percent from the field and set a new school-record 70.0 percent from the free-throw line; and
Whereas, following her career at Francis Marion, Ms. Moore won a first-round draft slot with the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL) and went on to play two seasons in the WBL, 1979-80 with the New York Stars and 1980-81 with the St. Louis Streak, earning All-Star status in 1981. She also played one pro season in Venezuela; and
Whereas, she still resides in Florence, participates in FMU's annual Old Timers' Game, and conducts a summer basketball camp; and
Whereas, Ms. Moore was one of the first inductees into the FMU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992. In 2000, she was inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame and in 2006 was among the inaugural class for the Florence Area Athletic Hall of Fame. During the summer of 1996, several items from her playing days were sent to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, for inclusion in the Women's Basketball Exhibit Area; and
Whereas, cognizant of her commitment to excellence throughout her sports career, the House of Representatives takes great pleasure in commending Pearl Moore on this recent honor, induction into the National Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, congratulate Pearl Moore of Florence on the occasion on her induction into the National Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2011.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be provided to Pearl Moore.
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