By ADRIENNE MOTLEY

On Feb. 21, 2014, the women’s basketball community lost one of the greatest pioneers of all time, Betty Jaynes. Jaynes was the first executive director of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame honored her with its John Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006. She was also inducted in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.

While we seldom heard of her work through the sports news media, she helped women’s basketball evolve by developing an organization in which women were able to compete in collegiate sports, just like men.

I believe that if it weren’t for Jaynes, women wouldn’t be allowed to compete in college like men. She is the reason that female coaches are allowed to get the salary they can get now.

She made a big impact in not just college but professional sports, by creating opportunities for women to be successful.