Lometa Odom
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Lometa Ruth Odom (November 29, 1933 – January 27, 2017) was an American
women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It was first played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large parts via women's college compet ...
player and coach. Odom played for Wayland Baptist from 1953 to 1956 during which the team began a streak of 131 consecutive victories (the longest streak in college and professional sports team history). Odom was a member of the U.S. women's national team which won the gold medal in basketball at the 1955 Pan American Games. In 2011 she was inducted into the
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...
.


Biography

Odom was born November 29, 1933, in
Washington, Oklahoma Washington is a town in McClain County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 673 as of the 2020 census. History While some sources list the town as having been named after George Washington, first president of the United States, the ''E ...
; her parents were David Hiram Odom (a farmer) and Opal Lee Odom (née Millican). The family moved to Dimmitt, Texas, in 1948. At Dimmitt High School she played four seasons of basketball, scoring 4,022 points and averaging 41 points per game. In 1951 she set the Texas single-game scoring record of 78 points. She led her high school team to state titles three times (1950–1952) and was selected for Texas All-State honors each of those seasons. Odom helped lead the Dimmitt team to victory over the
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
state champions twice, beating Slater High 47–20 in 1950 and Hansell High 39–30 in 1951.


AAU

Odom went on to play for the Wayland Baptist team in
Plainview, Texas Plainview is a city in and the county seat of Hale County, Texas, Hale County, Texas, United States. The population was 20,187 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Plainview began when Z. T. Maxwell and Edwin Lowden Lowe establ ...
from 1952 through 1956. At the time the school played against women's
Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...
(AAU) teams, most of which were run as semi-professional teams and were sponsored by businesses. Wayland convinced local businessman Claude Hutcherson, who ran a passenger and cargo air service in town, to fly the team to its away games. The team was renamed "Hutcherson Flying Queens" and became one of the most successful AAU women's teams. During her time at Wayland the team went 115–5, and began a series of 131 consecutive wins which ended in 1958. This 131-game run remains the longest winning streak in college and professional basketball history. Odom was the team's top offensive player all four years, and she was the first Wayland player to become a four-time
All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
. The team won three AAU titles while she was at Wayland, and she was the 1956 AAU Tournament
MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...
. Two of her years Wayland went undefeated (1953–1954 and 1954–1955). While she played, Wayland teams set several school records which still stand including season wins (37 in 1952–1953), consecutive wins (131 from 1953 to 1958), and best defensive average (29.4 points per game in 1954–1955). Former Wayland coach Harley Redin said of Odom, "She was such a great post player. Her fundamentals were just perfect. She was just exceptional at faking and getting good, accurate shots." Redin imposed some rules on his team, including that the players could not be married. (He thought it was unacceptable for women to travel without their husbands on road games). When Lometa's boyfriend in Dimmitt, Eloy Powell, proposed to her, she told him they had to wait. Just a few weeks later, Powell was killed by a train returning home from a visit to the campus. In 2013 Odom said, "I thought I’d never get over it, losing him. Some days I just wanted to go back to the farm. But I stayed. I knew I couldn’t let the Flying Queens or my daddy down." Odom was chosen for the women's basketball team to represent the U.S. at the Second
Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...
in March 1955 in
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
. The U.S. team went 8–0 and captured the gold medal.


Later life

After retiring as a player, Odom coached high school basketball and taught school for 37 years at schools including Gruver High School, Spearman High School, White Deer High School, Coronado Junior High and Plainview High School before retiring in 1994. She was a member of the PTA, the
National Science Teachers Association The National Science Teaching Association (NSTA), founded in 1944 (as the National Science Teachers Association) and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, is an association of science teachers in the United States and is the largest organization ...
and the Texas High School Coaches Association. Odom moved to
Canyon, Texas Canyon is a city in and the county seat of Randall County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,836 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Amarillo, Texas, Amarillo metropolitan area, metropolitan statistical area ...
in 2003 and then to Amarillo in 2010. She died January 27, 2017, in Amarillo and is buried at Westlawn Memorial Park in Dimmitt.


Honors

Odom was named to the
Helms Athletic Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his owner ...
Hall of Fame in 1968. She was the first woman inducted into the Texas High School Basketball Hall of Fame and the Texas Panhandle Sports Hall of Fame. Odom was inducted into the
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...
in 2011. The Hall of Fame inducted the Flying Queens in 2013 for their role in basketball history and the 131-game winning streak, naming the team "Trailblazers of the Game" and recognizing Odom and the players from that era.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Odom, Lometa 1933 births 2017 deaths American women's basketball players People from Dimmitt, Texas Wayland Baptist Pioneers athletes Basketball players at the 1955 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1955 Pan American Games Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in basketball 20th-century American sportswomen United States women's national basketball team players