Charlotte Smith
3/28/2023 | 1m 27sVideo has Closed Captions
Charlotte Smith led the UNC women's basketball team to a national title in 1994.
Charlotte Smith from Shelby was the star of the UNC women’s basketball team, leading them to the national title in 1994 with a thrilling last-second basket. Now, she coaches Elon women's basketball where she continues that winning spirit as the coach with the most wins in the program.
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The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.
Charlotte Smith
3/28/2023 | 1m 27sVideo has Closed Captions
Charlotte Smith from Shelby was the star of the UNC women’s basketball team, leading them to the national title in 1994 with a thrilling last-second basket. Now, she coaches Elon women's basketball where she continues that winning spirit as the coach with the most wins in the program.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship[upbeat music] - [Narrator] When Charlotte Smith took over the head coaching job for the Elon Women's Basketball program, she quoted one of her favorite childhood authors.
- Dr. Seuss said it best.
"Oh, the places you'll go."
- [Narrator] And for make believing she was hitting the winning shot at a hoop nailed to a tree, she certainly did go a few places.
After being the star of her Shelby High school team, she headed to the University of North Carolina.
Like her uncle and cousin NC State Hoop stars David Thompson and Dereck Whittenburg, Charlotte could really jump.
So well that she was the second woman to dunk in a women's basketball game.
[applause] Her incredible performance of 23 rebounds and 20 points and her buzzer-beating three-point shot led UNC to victory in the 1994 NCAA Women's Basketball Championship.
Her jersey hangs in the rafters at Carmichael Auditorium as the first UNC Women's player to have her number retired.
She would go on to play professional basketball.
First in Italy and later with the Charlotte Sting.
In 2011, she became the women's head coach at Elon.
Ten years later, she's the winningest coach in their program's history.
As the North Carolina Sports Hall of Famer tells her players, "You win in your mind before you win in real life."
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The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.