For Immediate Release
April 23, 2012
Governor Bev Perdue Declares April 18 "Shaw Lady Bears Basketball Day"
RALEIGH, NC (April 23, 2012)
– The national
champion Shaw University women's basketball team was welcomed to the
North Carolina Governor's Mansion by Governor Bev Perdue last Wednesday
afternoon. By signed proclamation, the Governor
declared April 18 as "Shaw Lady Bears Basketball Day" in the state.
"This
is a great day in the state of North Carolina. We have more than
nine million people in this great state and you represented every
single citizen," said Gov. Perdue. "We are very proud of you and what
you have achieved both on and off the court."
Dr.
Dorothy Cowser Yancy, president of Shaw University, then addressed
the team. "I’m proud of the fact that our ladies did this with class.
They represented our university, our school and our state. And it’s
fitting that they won the national championship on the 100th anniversary
of the CIAA Tournament and the 30th anniversary
of the women's championship."
Members
of the Lady Bears were individually presented with the Laurel
Wreath award, which honors outstanding athletic achievement. Gov.
Perdue stated, "You are now goodwill ambassadors of athletics in the
State of North Carolina."
Shaw
won the Division II national women's basketball championship on
March 17 when they defeated #2 Ashland 88-82 in overtime. The
then-unranked Lady Bears defeated four top ten teams on their way to the
title and were voted number one in the final USA Today/ESPN Division II
Women's Basketball Poll.
For more information on Shaw athletics, visit www.shawbears.com.
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Shaw University was founded in 1865 and is the oldest historically
black university in the south. Shaw University is a private, co-educational
liberal arts University, that awards degrees at both the undergraduate and
graduate levels. The primary mission of Shaw University is teaching with the
commitment to maintain excellence in research and academic programs that foster
intellectual enhancement and technological skills.