Born: July 26, 1955
Hometown: Morton, MS
Year Induction: 2011
Morton High School (1970-1973)
Mississippi College (1973-1977)
Pan American Games championship team (’75)
World Championship tournament (’75)
USA Women’s basketball team trials (’76)
Member U.S. National Women’s Basketball Team (’76)
Silver medal team in World University games in Bulgaria (’77)
Women’s Professional Basketball League
Chicago Hustle (1978-1981)
Head coach, Mississippi College women’s basketball (1983-1990)
Head coach, Mississippi College softball team (1986-1989)
Head coach, Neville High girls basketball team, Monroe, LA (1990-1992)
Honored with “Rita Easterling Day” in hometown Morton, MS, including parade and billboard (August 15, 1975)
Mississippi College Athletic Hall of Fame (’00)
Named one of ESPN’s Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Players of Pre-NCAA era (’06)
Raised in the Polkville, MS, community, Easterling rode her horse to school and began playing hoops in the 4th grade. Rita was dubbed “Queen of the Floor Burns” for her aggressive play in the WBL.
Her individual college rivalry with fellow All-American Lusia “Lucy” Harris from Gulf South Conference foe Delta State made the DSU-Mississippi College games among the most widely-watched in the state.
601-982-8264
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
MONDAY – SATURDAY
The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates the Magnolia State’s incredibly rich history of producing world-class athletes and teams. The mission of the Mississipi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum is to preserve, protect and promote Mississippi’s rich sports heritage for this and future generations.
© 2018 Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame | Privacy Policy
Website & Marketing by Nuzu Digital