Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer, right, is hugged by one of her players, Matee Ajavon, as Stringer celebrates after her team beat DePaul 60-46 Wednesday, in Piscataway, N.J. Stringer became only the third women's coach to win 800 games. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) |
Stringer's resilience, love for game as notable as numbers
Feb. 28, 2008
For Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer, who hit the 800-victory milestone with the Scarlet Knights' 60-46 win over DePaul on Wednesday, the listing of the many hardships she has faced is a sad litany well known to women's hoops fans.
She's a remarkably resilient woman unbroken by more sadness than most of us ever encounter. No celebration of her coaching career can take place without us thinking about the tough times she has been through away from the basketball court: her daughter's life-altering illness, her husband's sudden death, her own fight against breast cancer.