BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Little Rock Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee and alumna Karen Aston, a former two-year standout for the Trojans, is being recognized by the Ohio Valley Conference Wednesday as a Title IX Pioneer.
As part of a year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Title IX, the OVC will celebrate pioneers from member institutions during its annual Spring Meetings this week.
"I am honored, first of to be representing Little Rock in any manner," Aston said upon learning of her recognition by Little Rock and the OVC. "I loved my time there and cherish my memories. Secondly, I am humbled and honored to be mentioned as a pioneer in regards to Title IX. My life has been enormously impacted by Women in Sport and by the realization that sports molded me as a woman. There are countless women who have had an influence on my life, starting there at Little Rock with Babs Blagg and
Van Compton. I am forever grateful for their willingness to fight for equality and opportunity for women in sports and will always feel obligated to pay it forward."
Aston is a 1987 graduate of Little Rock, where she earned her bachelor's degree in physical education. A native of Benton, she played two seasons of standout basketball for the Trojans after transferring from Ouachita Baptist, leading the team in scoring and field goals made in 1985-86.
Following graduation, Aston entered the coaching ranks where her experience ranges from high school to the collegiate ranks. She was named the Arkansas Basketball Coach of the Year after leading Vilonia to a 36-1 record and the Class 2A state title in 1992-93. Her stops at the collegiate level include Charlotte, North Texas and Texas as Aston is currently the head coach of UTSA.
"The sum of Karen Aston's personal and career experience, to date, continues to achieve the promises of Title IX," former Little Rock Senior Associate AD Richard Turner said. "As a student-athlete, throughout high school and college, she has prepared herself both academically and professionally to become an exceptionally successful coach, mentor and advocate for gender equity. She has influenced the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of women over the last four and one half decades by building confidence and teaching a strong work ethic. As proud as we are of Karen's achievements and her representation of Little Rock, we are even more proud of the person she has become."
Aston has been consistently recognized as one of the top coaches in the nation. She was one of four finalists for the Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year award in 2017 and was one of 10 semifinalists for the honor in 2018. Aston also earned Big 12 Coach of the Year accolades in 2017.
As a coach, she has a career record of 285-146 [.661]. In her 13 seasons as a head coach, Aston's teams have averaged 22 wins per year and have made a combined 10 postseason appearances.
She was inducted into the Little Rock Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019.
While she wore a Trojans uniform, Aston shot .409 (158-for-386) over her career as she averaged 10.3 points and 1.6 rebounds per game, scoring 372 points, grabbing 58 rebounds with 24 assists and five steals overall in her 36 games played.
The 2016-17 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Aston has led her teams to six NCAA Tournament appearances. including three Sweet 16 finishes and an Elite Eight appearance in 2016. Aston was named a finalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year award in 2016-17 and has led Texas to 22 or more victories in each of the past five seasons, finishing second in the Big 12 for the last three years.
On Wednesday, June 1, the league will sponsor a Title IX Luncheon, which will honor 13 pioneers from its current and future members institutions. The honorees, picked by each school, include:
- Lin Dunn, Austin Peay
- Betty Wiseman, Belmont
- Dr. Gail Richard, Eastern Illinois
- Bre Watts, Lindenwood
- Karen Aston, Little Rock
- Deanie Brown, Morehead State
- Margaret Simmons, Murray State
- Cindy Gannon, Southeast Missouri
- Rosemarie Archangel, SIUE
- Patty Marcum, Southern Indiana
- Chandra Cheeseborough-Guice, Tennessee State
- Marynell Meadors, Tennessee Tech
- Bettye Giles, UT Martin
June 23, 2022 marks the 50th Anniversary of Title IX, which was signed into law in 1972 as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. It states:
"No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity."
The OVC established women's championships in the sports of basketball, tennis and track in 1977 with cross country and volleyball added over the next four years. Those sports were initially governed by the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW), but the overall strength of women's programs in the league was demonstrated by the automatic bids the OVC instantly received when the NCAA became the governing body in 1982. The conference added women's golf and softball in 1994 with women's soccer following in 1998.
Additional information on the celebration can also be found on the NCAA's website: ncaa.org/titleix50.
Little Rock will officially join the Ohio Valley Conference on July 1, 2022 as the Trojans become one of 10 members of a regionally-balanced league.
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