Natalie Williams Inducted into Pac-12 Hall of Honor with All-Female Inductee Class

LAS VEGAS – UCLA alumna Natalie Williams was inducted into the Pac-12 Hall of Honor on Friday, Mar. 3, during a private ceremony as part of the week-long Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament celebrations in Las Vegas. The ceremony occurred prior to that Friday’s semifinal matchups, which saw UCLA take on No. 1 Stanford in Michelob ULTRA Arena. The class was also celebrated during a special recognition at halftime of the Bruin’s semifinal game inside the Las Vegas arena.
 
The 2023 class will be the first ever all-female class inducted into the Hall of Honor in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, which the Pac-12 continues to celebrate through its powHER of the Pac campaign since its launch on the milestone anniversary in June 2022.  
 
Williams at UCLA
 
Williams became the first-ever woman to earn first-team All-America honors in both volleyball and basketball in the same year and achieved legendary collegiate careers in both sports.
 
In volleyball, Williams was a three-time first-team All-American and two-time Honda Award winner as the National Player of the Year. She was twice named NCAA Tournament MVP while leading the Bruins to consecutive NCAA Championships in 1990 and 1991.
 
Williams was a two-time first-team All-American in basketball and the Pac-10 Player of the Year as a senior in 1994. She was named Pac-10 Female Athlete of the Decade for the years of 1987-1996, going on to play professionally in the American Basketball League (ABL) and WNBA and winning gold with Team USA at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
 
Williams was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004 and currently serves as the General Manager for the defending WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces. 
 
Full 2023 Hall of Honor Class
 
Susie Parra (Arizona)     
Jackie Johnson-Powell (Arizona State)    
Dr. Luella Lilly (California)          
Ceal Barry (Colorado)   
Janie Takeda Reed (Oregon)
Dr. Mary Budke (Oregon State) 
Jessica Mendoza (Stanford)
Natalie Williams (UCLA)
Barbara Hallquist DeGroot (USC)
Kim Gaucher (Utah)
Danielle Lawrie (Washington)
Sarah Silvernail (Washington State)