Ann Meyers became the first woman to sign a free-agent contract with an NBA team when she inked a deal with the Indiana Pacers in 1979. Though she was quickly cut, the achievement was historic — and one in a series of barrier-breaking moments for Meyers, a 5 ft. 9 in. guard from California. She was the first high-school player ever to be tapped for the U.S. National Team; the first woman to win a full athletic scholarship to the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA), where she became the first four-time All-American selection; and the first player drafted in the ill-fated Woman’s Professional Basketball Association, in 1978. When she married Los Angeles Dodgers hurler Don Drysdale in 1986, they became the first couple ever to hold spots in their respective sports’ Halls of Fame.
Top 10 Female Sports Pioneers
When Japanese knuckleballer Eri Yoshida became the first woman drafted by a professional baseball team on Nov. 17, she joined an elite club of female athletes who have broken sport's gender barrier