Melinda HALE

Melinda Hale was an all-around athlete at Slippery Rock State in Pennsylvania, where she played basketball, lacrosse, softball, and ran track. She captained the basketball team her junior and senior years. Hale later was a head coach for softball and volleyball at Kansas State University. She was asked to try out for the US handball team in 1974 but did not make the team for the 1976 Olympic qualifying. Hale did make the ill-fated 1980 US Olympic team and stayed with the team to compete at the 1984 Olympics. She married Robert Rhoads, a basketball star at Mercer High, and later head basketball coach at Slippery Rock High School.