Fifty years ago, the destination of the very first gold ball trophy for Class A girls’ basketball was Gardiner Area High School. Reflecting from a 2025 perspective, it was an amazing groundbreaking time in Maine girls’ basketball history.
In 1975, it was a time of pure joy as we proudly lifted that shiny trophy. As I look back 50 years later it brings great gratification. At that time, this team of talented girls (now successful women) made history without realizing how pivotal it was. Not many people can be referred to as trailblazers or pioneers but that was what we were. Girls playing at the Augusta Civic Center in the evening before 3,000 screaming fans, cheerleaders, and a pep band was generally unheard of for teams back in 1975.
Thanks to Title IX, we are place holders in the start of the surge in popularity of girls’ and women’s sports and fitness. What we did for the sheer love of the game was pivotal and transformational. I look back humbly with great satisfaction to know that participation in girls’ sports and fitness was positively impacted and moved forward when we stepped onto the hardwood floor that night.
Crystal (Pazdziorko) Proulx
Bow, N.H.
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