The Washington Mystics recognize the 26th anniversary of National Girls and Women in Sports Day (Feb. 1) with a week-long celebration.

Highlights in Women's Sports History:
1896 - The first women's intercollegiate basketball championship is played between Stanford and the University of California at Berkely. Stanford wins 2-1 on April 4 before a crowd of 700 women.
1904 - Amanda Clement, just 16 years old, becomes the first female umpire to officiate a men's baseball game in Iowa for pay.
1948 - Patty Berg becomes a founder and the first president of the Ladies' Professional Golf Association. [In 1979 the LPGA established the Patty Berg Award for outstanding contributions to women's golf.
1967 - Billie Jean King is named the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, an honor she earns again in 1973.
1979 - Lyn Memarie is the first woman to complete the Hawaii Ironman Triathalon in 12:55:38.
1982 - Cheryl Miller scores 105 points in a basketball game for Riverside, CA Polytechnic High School.
1984 - Senda Berenson Abbott, Bertha Teague and Margaret Wade become the first women to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
1990 - Bernadette Locke Maddox (Connecticut Sun) becomes the first female Division I coach of a men's basketball team when she joins the University of Kentucky as an assistant coach to Rick Pitino in June.
1994 - 300% more girls play high school basketball than did in 1972.
1999 - Tennessee's Lady Vols player Chamique Holdsclaw is named to her third All American basketball team by the AP, the first woman to make the team three times. She is one of only four players to ever make the Kodak All-American Team four times.

Marianne Stanley on NGWSD Celebration

This Wednesday, February 1 was National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD). Now in its 28th year, NGWSD, is a great time to look back and to contemplate just how much the sports landscape has changed in my lifetime.

Sports have always played a huge role in my life. I grew up in a suburban Philadelphia community just outside the western edge of the city. There is a rich sports tradition and history in the "city of brotherly love." Having the good fortune to live in a place where I could closely follow both professional and college sports at an early age was an important factor in instilling in me a love and passion for sports, especially basketball, a passion that I maintain to this day. Read on...

Crystal Langhorne on NGWSD Celebration

As we celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day on February 1st, it's important to look at how significant this year is for women's sports. It's the 40th Anniversary of Title IX, the WNBA is adding another year to its legacy as the longest professional league for women's sports in history, and the Mystics are celebrating its 15th Anniversary. I am extremely fortunate to witness this monumental year and play alongside my Mystics teammates and with my fellow WNBA athletes, some of the most talented female basketball players in the world.

Being a part of the Mystics organization during its 15th anniversary year is especially exciting for me. We have come such a long way and I look forward to the progress we will continue to make in the next 15 years!

Playing basketball is important to me for so many different reasons. It has taken me all around the world, from the US to Russia to Spain and France, which in turn has allowed me to be a role model for young girls here at home, but also internationally. Experiencing basketball overseas has allowed me to learn about different cultures while playing the game I love. I am so grateful for the opportunities that sports have afforded me throughout my life. This is why National Girls and Women in Sports Day is so vital. It is important to celebrate the development and growth of women’s sports while continuing to do the work needed to continue to grow it. I am grateful for the women who have paved the way for me and hope to add to their legacy for the upcoming generations.

Monique Currie on NGWSD Celebration

National Girls and Women in Sports Day is a special day for me because without sports, I wouldn't be the person I am today. As someone who grew up in Washington, DC and came to Mystics games growing up, it means so much to me to step onto the court not only to represent my city, but as a role model for young girls. Basketball has given me so much! I have been able to travel the world and have experiences that I wouldn't have had otherwise. It is important for girls to be involved in sports growing up because they are more likely to take on leadership roles and develop their socialization skills, all while learning how to handle success and failure. It's one of the best things a girl can do to reach her future goals.

In addition to my work on the court, I want girls to look to me for inspiration with how to improve their own game, just as I looked to those female athletes that paved the way for me. AAU basketball, in particular, has always been important to me and something that I encourage all girls to get involved with at a young age. Just like the pioneers before them, they have to continue to be active and involved in sports so that the upcoming generations will continue to enjoy the benefits they have access to.

It's not every day that female athletes get recognized, which is why I feel it is important to bring attention to this national day and all that we have accomplished. GREAT JOB LADIES!

Trudi Lacey on NGWSD Celebration

Mo Evans on NGWSD Celebration

Christy Winters Scott on NGWSD Celebration

Christy Winters Scott was a four-year letter winner for the University of Maryland Terrapins from 1986 to 1990. In 1989, she was an integral part of Maryland winning its eighth Atlantic Coast Conference championship and reach its third Final Four. Winters Scott has an extensive coaching background, having coached at various local universities such Maryland, Georgetown and George Mason for 10 years. In January, 2010, Christy was also named the Washington Wizards and Mystics Camps and Clinics Director. Currently, Christy is the official Mystics broadcast analyst.

Basketball has played an integral role in my life. I began playing in the driveway of our home, with my older brother when I was 6 years old. I played on my first organized team when I was 8 years old and we won the Youth League Championship that season. Suffice to say, I was hooked, and fell in love with the competition and challenges that the game of basketball presented on every possession. Through my pre-teen years, I would continue to play, against a lot of male friends of my brother in our backyard and on the driveways of our neighbors. They would show me no mercy! I wouldn't have it any other way!! My shot was getting blocked and I had to figure out a way to get my shot off. I was sick and tired of getting my shot blocked, so I started head faking, and turning over my left shoulder. Things were never the same after that shot started falling. The guys on the other team were getting upset with each other, saying, "man, you better check her!" I kept my game face on, but inside I knew that I was on to something. When I could have easily taken myself out of the game because I wasn't having much success, I stuck with it and found a way to make it work. Read on...