The Mid-American Conference set a new all-time record for women's
basketball attendance as the number of fans through the turnstiles
jumped 10,806 to 124,659, including MAC Tournament games on campus sites
and in Cleveland.
"We're encouraged by the continued growth of our women's basketball
programs," said MAC commissioner Rich Chryst. "It's consistent with how
the game is progressing nationally and with the investment in the sport
which is occurring on each of our campuses."
The two MAC divisional champions -- Kent State and Western Michigan --
each advanced to postseason tournaments, as the Golden Flashes advanced
to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in school history, while the
Broncos competed in the WNIT for the second consecutive season.
The University of Toledo women's basketball program ranked among the top
50 NCAA Division I schools in average attendance during its 1999-2000
campaign. The Rockets averaged 1,884 fans per contest last year to rank
49th nationally and first among Mid-American Conference schools for the
10th straight season.
Toledo was joined in the top 100 by Kent State, which averaged 1,375
spectators as the No. 82 team in the country in terms of fan attendance.
NCAA women's college basketball attendance continued its remarkable
growth by posting a 16th consecutive record high in 1999-00. National
women's attendance rose by nearly 700,000 as 8,697,712 spectators
attended games during the 1999-00 season. Of that figure, 6,356,729
attended Division I games, the first time that total has exceeded six
million.