1979 State Champions

Induction Year: 2016

Front Row (L to R): Tina Conti, Connie Erickson, Missy Isaacson, Kate Jerney, Debbie Durso, Becky Schnell, Barbara Atsaves

Second Row (L to R): Lynn Carlsen, Pam Hintz, Karen Wikstrom, Coach Gene Earl, Judy Becker, Nancy Eck, Peggy Japely, Holly Anderson

On paper, the 1979 Niles West girls’ basketball team, or "Earl's Girls", as they came to be known under first-year coach Gene Earl, may not have looked like the extraordinarily dominant team they were on the court. But led by guards Connie Erickson and Barb Atsaves, and forward Peggy Japely, the ‘79 team continued to build on three years of success and growth by further establishing a reputation for quickness and intensity on defense, and a quick-strike offense that feasted on the transition game. Often rolling over bigger opponents by virtue of their lethal runs, the Indians lost just once in 29 games -- winning the Evanston Christmas tournament and capturing the Central Suburban league title. In the postseason, there was little doubt the Indians were going all the way, rarely trailing as they captured regional, sectional and super-sectional championships before steaming through Champaign and emerging with the state title. It was just the third girls’ state basketball tournament in IHSA history and the last in which just one state champ among all classes would be crowned.

The 1979 team's major accomplishments during that historic season include:
1. Record 28-1
2. Evanston Christmas tournament champs
3. Undefeated Conference Champs
4. Regional, Sectional, and Super-sectional Champs
5. State Champions (1 class tournament)