JILL RANKIN SCHNEIDER - INDUCTEE #97
hall of fame fast fact:
"I owe my career to Bill Clemmons of Phillips, who taught me how to play," said Jill Schneider. "I hated basketball my freshman year and was playing volleyball. He taught me to love that game". She said she also was fortunate to be under the tutelage of Dean Weese at Wayland, Pat Head Summitt at Tennessee and Jody Conradt at Texas, who all are in the Women's Hall of Fame, as is former Queens coach Harley Redin, "who was my pilot" for road games.
Jill Rankin Schneider
Jill Schneider began her career in basketball at Phillips High School, where she made all-state twice and won a state title in 1976. While in high school, Schneider averaged 40.7 points a game.
At Wayland, Schneider made the Kodak All-American team in 1977 and four other All-American teams. Her top college game was 47 points, which stood as a WBU record for several years. She still ranks No. 5 all-time in Queens scoring with 2,121 points in three seasons. She still holds five Wayland records, including 1,000 points in a season.
In 1980, Schneider earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team and was drafted by the New Orleans Pride of the fledging women’s pro league, but chose not to play.
Later, Schneider helped coach the 1986 national championship team at Texas.
She went on to coach at Borger High School for 12 years, taking the Lady Bulldogs to state in 1994, then moved to Lubbock Monterey where she became the head coach.
