Ginny Hunt Death, Obituary – It seems only natural that the former director of women’s athletics at Montana State University, Dr. Virginia “Ginny” Hunt, would make a graceful retirement from the world of sports in the same year that honors the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX. She was a pioneer and a visionary of women in collegiate athletics not only at Montana State, but also on a national level. Hunt passed away on Friday morning at her home in Iowa surrounded by her family. She was a pioneer of women in collegiate athletics not only at Montana State, but also on a national level. Tricia Binford, the head coach of the women’s basketball team at Montana State University, expressed her regret at the school’s loss of “an immensely inspirational Bobcat who has been influential in so many lives over the past 40-50 years at Montana State.”
“She has been a pioneer in the process of providing possibilities for our student-athletes, as well as having faith in this university and its athletic department. We have all suffered the loss of a fighter who was one of a kind, full of zeal, and committed. Hunt began her fight for equal access to competitive sporting activities for women at a very young age. She was more than capable of holding her own when competing in sports against the males despite having been raised in Iowa and being a lifelong admirer of the Hawkeyes. Hunt’s parents took her to a number of Iowa men’s basketball games, and while she was there, she daydreamed about playing for the Hawkeyes herself.
The inability of Hunt to participate in athletics during his undergraduate years was a source of increasing anger for him. Women were only allowed to participate in intramural competition twice a week, in contrast to the males, who were free to pursue any athletic endeavor they chose. At that moment, Hunt made a solemn oath that she would one day act as a catalyst for change.
Soon after receiving his high school diploma in 1962, Hunt enrolled at the College of Wooster, a private liberal arts college located in Wooster, Ohio. She began her career in education as an instructor in the women’s physical education department, but she swiftly advanced to the position of assistant professor, and then in 1970, she was promoted to the position of associate professor.
Wooster University, which is currently a member of the NCAA Division III, used to host women’s club teams in the sports of basketball, field hockey, and volleyball. 1965 was the year that the clubs were promoted to varsity status, and Hunt was the coach of both the field hockey and volleyball teams. She was Wooster College’s first Director of Athletics for Women and served in that capacity beginning in the year 1970. After that, Hunt attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to work toward her doctoral degree. And then, in 1976, he moved on to work at the University of Michigan as the assistant athletic director, which is the equivalent of working at the Division I level of the NCAA.
The appointment of Hunt as the first woman to hold the position of women’s athletics director at Montana State was made public on July 13, 1977. Ellen Kreighbaum, who was the chairperson of the eight-person search committee to fill the position at the time, stated that the members of the committee believe that Montana State has the potential to have a first-class women’s program. The remuneration was the primary factor in our success in luring an administrator of national stature to come work for us at MSU. The compensation is on par with that offered by the men’s athletics department.
Kreighbaum continued by saying, “Ginny brings a wealth of experience as an administrator, an extensive background in coaching numerous sports, and she is also a highly respected official.” “She will hold the key to the door, and by opening it, she will give us access to certain opportunities we might not have otherwise had. I believe that our athletics program for women will serve as a model for other athletics programs geared toward women. The thriving women’s athletic programs at MSU will always be a testament to Hunt’s success and will stand the test of time. She was one of MSU’s 250 fans when she attended her first women’s basketball game there. At her final game as the women’s athletic director at Montana State, there was a crowd of 5,000 people, and Montana State won the Big Sky Championship for the first time in the history of the program.
“What a legacy Dr. Ginny Hunt left at Montana State,” said former Bobcat head coach Judy Spoelstra, who led the MSU women’s basketball program to its first Big Sky Conference title and appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Spoelstra was responsible for guiding the MSU women’s basketball program to its first Big Sky Conference title and appearance in the NCAA Tournament. “She was an incredible builder for women’s athletics and was responsible for providing so many young women with the opportunity to compete.”