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Stiles' pro career made possible by Title IX pioneers

By AMY HOUSTON
CatchItKansas.com

After completing her first season in the WNBA, Jackie Stiles underwent surgery on her wrist. She watched TV as she awaited the medical procedure in New York. It was Sept. 11, 2001.

Stiles saw the airplanes hit the Twin Towers on TV, and she and her trainer remained stranded in New York for a week before they could fly out. Life in America changed that day, and it was the beginning of a life change for Stiles. The surgery was the first of 13 in three years, and the hardship on her body proved fatal to her basketball career.

But her talent and ability had energized the girls basketball world. She had set records at Claflin High School and Southwest Missouri State University, in Kansas and in the NCAA.

Stiles participated in basketball, volleyball, tennis, track and cross country at Claflin, where her father was the varsity boys basketball coach. He had keys to the gym, so she could spend unlimited time working on her shot, eventually forcing herself to make 1,000 baskets a day.

"I'm extremely competitive," she said. "I can't stand losing, and it's not just in sports."

Playing a board game with Stiles is perilous. Facing her on the basketball court? Good luck.

Stiles consistently shined on the court, scoring a state-record 71 points in a game in 1997, the year she graduated from Claflin. Her other state basketball records include 3,603 points scored in her career and 662 free throws made.

In addition, Stiles established state records as the four-time track champion in three events: the 3,200-meter run, 1,600-meter run and 800-meter run. Stiles recalled an announcer asking the crowd to stand and cheer her on as she won the 800-meter run her senior year at the state track meet. It was her last high school sporting event in Kansas.

"Some of my best memories have come from competing in high school sports in Kansas," she said.

Stiles signed to play basketball at Southwest Missouri State, where she led her team to the Final Four and scored 3,393 career points. Although Lynette Woodard - a standout basketball player at Wichita North and the University of Kansas - scored 3,649 points as a Jayhawk, Stiles' total is an NCAA Division I record because Woodard played before the NCAA took over women's sports.

Stiles was drafted by the Portland Fire in 2001 and named WNBA rookie of the year. She didn't take for granted the chance to play professionally.

"When I started playing (basketball), there wasn't a WNBA," she said.

Stiles acknowledged that women's basketball has grown because of opportunities created by Title IX and by her predecessors. Today's opportunities range from tournaments for girls as young as 4, she explained, and careers for women at the professional level. Just as female basketball players sacrificed in the past, Stiles expressed hope that WNBA players' sacrifices - working for less money than NBA stars and traveling without the luxury of jets - would prove beneficial for female athletes in the future.

Stiles lives in Wichita and works in various basketball-related enterprises: making instructional videos, giving private lessons, offering personal training and appearing for camps, clinics and speaking engagements. The wear and tear on her body during her years of athletic competition - and the numerous surgeries that followed - limit her ability to play basketball and most other sports.

As a result, she has taken up cycling. Doctors encouraged her to work with a stationary bicycle during rehab from her surgeries, and she bought a road bike in May 2005. She started racing the following month.

Stiles no longer competes in cycling, but her dedication to the activity hasn't waned. She rides 50 miles a day "for fun."

"I love it," she added. "I'm addicted to exercise. I'm so used to being active my whole life."