Kittie Blakemore

Kittie Blakemore was inducted into the inaugural College of Applied Human Sciences Hall of Fame in the fall of 2025. She was previously inducted into the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences Hall of Fame in 1994.

A native of Manassas, Va., Blakemore earned her bachelor’s degree in education from James Madison University in 1950 and a master’s degree in physical education from West Virginia University in 1961. She joined the WVU faculty in 1960 and went on to serve as a professor in the School of Physical Education, a leader in women’s intramural programs, and one of the University’s most visible advocates for women’s athletics in the decades surrounding the passage of Title IX.

Blakemore became WVU’s first head women’s basketball coach in 1973. Over 19 seasons, she compiled a 301-214 record and led the Mountaineers to NCAA Tournament appearances in 1989 and 1992. Her teams won the 1989 Atlantic 10 Tournament title and the 1992 A-10 regular season championship. Among the standout players she coached were All-American Rosemary Kosiorek and Georgeann Wells, who became the first player to dunk in a women’s collegiate game.

After stepping away from coaching in 1992, Blakemore became WVU’s assistant athletic director for sports development and its first senior woman administrator, helping launch new women’s programs, including soccer. Her 36-year career at WVU earned her numerous honors, including multiple Coach of the Year and teaching awards, induction into the WVU Sports Hall of Fame, and membership in the WVU Legends Society. In 2023, WVU named a campus road in her honor—Kittie Blakemore Drive.

Blakemore passed away in 2020 at the age of 91.