We Are the Champions
...on and off the court
N o doubt about it—the #1 Lady Vols are champions. Not just once, not just twice, but SEVEN times. When Pat Summit and her team defeated Rutgers for the championship April 13, the victory stood for more than just proficiency on the basketball court. The Lady Vols’ winning ways are rooted in something deeper than numbers on a won/lost ledger.
Work's the Thing
Several traits point to the Lady Vols’ healthy work ethic.
“A key component reflected in their behavior is the importance not only of winning, but of the game, team, and UT in general,” says David Woehr, UT professor of industrial and organizational psychology.
Woehr says work ethic isn’t a single thing, but rather a set of attitudes and beliefs that includes hard work, productive use of time, self-reliance, morals, and a focus on rewards to come.
“Many of the behaviors exhibited by Coach Summitt and the Lady Vols are indicative of high levels of this set of work ethic values,” Woehr says. “I’ve heard some of the players on TV as well as Coach Summitt emphasize how the team viewed hard work as a key to obtaining their ultimate goal. This reflects a strong belief in the value of hard work.”
Values to Live By
Core values steadily reinforced by the coaching staff build character among the Lady Vols.
“These core values are rooted in excellence in every sense of the word,” says Joy DeSensi, professor and head of the Department of Exercise, Sport, and Leisure Studies. “This includes personal excellence; respect for coaches, teammates, and opponents; moral and ethical excellence; and obviously excellence in skills of the game.”
Putting Everything in Perspective
Acting as role models for other young women is another important aspect of being a Lady Vol. A recent hospital visit gave the team an opportunity to learn and grow emotionally.
Five Lady Vols visited East Tennessee Children’s Hospital in Knoxville to spread some joy. They ended up sharing some pain, as well.
At the hospital, Nicky Anosike, Shannon Bobbitt, Alberta Auguste, Cait McMahan, and Alex Fuller spent time with several patients, including a young man who played his guitar while they all sang. They also met a little boy who had been released from the hospital earlier that day but refused to leave until he met the Lady Vols.
Assistant Coach Nikki Caldwell says mingling with the young patients was both poignant and eye-opening for the basketball stars.
The most emotional moment came when the Lady Vols visited a terminally ill child and her parents. The parents had made the heart-wrenching decision to discontinue their child’s life-support but wanted to give their little girl—though not responsive—a chance to meet the Lady Vols.
“We saw things at Children’s Hospital that put a lot of things in perspective,” Caldwell says.