Kansas, 1981
• 1980 Academic All-America® First Team
• 1981 Academic All-America® First Team
Lynette Woodard was inducted into the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Hall of Fame in 1992.
Lynette Woodward, a high school basketball star in her hometown, grew up in Wichita, Kan. She helped lead her high school team to a Kansas state championship in her time there.
After moving on from high school, she went on to attend the University of Kansas, where she became one of a select few NCAA athletes to be named as an All-American all four years of college (1978-1981). She graduated from Kansas as the school’s all-time leader in scoring with 3,649 points to set the all-time major college women's basketball scoring record. She also led the nation in at least one of the key statistical categories (points, steals, rebounds) in each of her four seasons. She was the first woman at KU to have her jersey retired.
Woodard then moved on to play internationally, as she starred in the Italian women’s professional basketball league. She, along with fellow Academic All-America Hall of Famer Kim Mulkey, was named to the 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team which captured gold. She was elected as a captain of that prestigious team as well.
The following year, Woodward was named as the first female member of the Harlem Globetrotters. She was a member of the team until 1987. After ending her tenure with the Globetrotters she returned to play in Italy for two more seasons and led the league in scoring over that time.
Woodward returned to the U.S. in 1996 to join the newly established Women’s National Basketball League (WNBA), playing for the Cleveland Rockers. She played in the league for two seasons before retiring in 1998. Her career accomplishments eventually led ESPN to name her as one of the greatest athletes in the history of the state of Kansas.
She later coached in the college ranks including as an assistant at her alma mater under her coach Marian Washington.