Bill Text: VA HR216 | 2024 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Monica Wright Rogers.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-03-04 - Bill text as passed House (HR216ER) [HR216 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2024-HR216-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers, a record-breaking basketball player at the University of Virginia who went on to achieve success in the Women's National Basketball Association and inspired other women athletes as a coach, was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2024; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers grew up in Woodbridge, where she led the Forest Park High School girls' basketball team to Virginia High School League state titles in 2004 and 2006, and tallied 1,913 points during her high school career; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers was selected as the Gatorade State Player of the Year in 2005 and 2006, was named to the USA Today All-USA first team in 2006 and was honored as a McDonald's All American and a Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) All American; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers matriculated at the University of Virginia (UVA) and spent four years rewriting the record books in women's basketball; she set program records for scoring average with 19.1 points per game, 25-point games with 28, field goal attempts with 2,207, and field goals made with 962, and her career points total of 2,540 is not only a UVA record, but ranks third in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) history; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers was a three-time All American and was selected as the 2010 ACC Player of the Year, ACC Defensive Player of the Year, and WBCA National Defensive Player of the Year; and
WHEREAS, during her college years, Monica Wright Rogers was also voted as captain of Team USA in the 2007 FIBA Under-19 World Cup and led the team to a 9–0 record and a gold medal; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers was the second overall pick in the 2010 Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) Draft; she was selected to the 2010 WNBA All-Rookie Team after averaging 11.1 points per game in her first season with the Minnesota Lynx; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers went on to win two WNBA championship titles with the Minnesota Lynx in 2011 and 2013; she had a dominant performance during a 3–0 sweep of the Atlanta Dream in the 2013 WNBA Finals, recording 11.7 points per game and 1.7 steals per game; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers subsequently played in multiple foreign leagues, was a member of the Seattle Storm in the WNBA and served as secretary/treasurer of the WNBA Players Association during the 2015 season; and
WHEREAS, Monica Wright Rogers began working as a director of student-athlete development at the University of the Incarnate Word in 2017, joined Liberty University as an assistant coach in 2018, then returned to her alma mater as an assistant coach for the UVA women's basketball team in 2019; she specialized in developing wing players and ensuring that her programs recruited top talent to stay competitive; and
WHEREAS, in January 2023, Monica Wright Rogers was hired as the assistant general manager of the Phoenix Mercury; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That Monica Wright Rogers hereby be commended on the occasion of her induction into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame with the Class of 2024; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Monica Wright Rogers as an expression of the House of Delegates' admiration for her legacy of achievements in basketball as both a player and a coach.
