WNBA, college basketball analyst to speak at Academy of Medicine annual awards dinner

Debbie Antonelli, WNBA and college basketball analyst.

Debbie Antonelli, one of the nation’s most esteemed WNBA and college basketball analysts, will be the featured speaker at the Wright State University Academy of Medicine Annual Dinner and Distinguished Guest Lecture on Wednesday, April 25, at the Sinclair Conference Center, Building 12, 444 West Third Street, Dayton, Ohio 45402. The reception begins at 5:30 p.m., and dinner will be served at 7 p.m.

The annual event honors outstanding medical students, residents and faculty from the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine while recognizing the dedicated work of members of the Wright State University Academy of Medicine. Each year, the event features inspirational speakers from the fields of medicine, arts or entertainment.

Antonelli has covered 80 college basketball games each season in 30 years of sports reporting. She is a respected expert on collegiate and professional basketball, informed by her own playing days at North Carolina State University. Because of her efforts, the hardwood at North Carolina State was renamed Kay Yow Court, after the famous coach with more than 700 career wins.

She began broadcasting with the WNBA in 1996, its first year, and has spent more than 21 years working with the Indiana Fever and the Charlotte Sting. For the better part of a decade, Antonelli has advocated that Las Vegas become a destination city for women’s college basketball. Her efforts have helped bring Play4Kay Vegas and other tournaments to the City of Lights.

Her experience in sports also has led her to develop media training workshops to teach coaches and athletes to communicate in any setting. Antonelli has trained players at schools such as Kansas, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Wake Forest and many others. She sits on the Board of Directors of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, Naismith Trophy and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, among others.

The Wright State University Academy of Medicine is a community-based service organization dedicated to supporting excellence in medicine through education, research and service. Since its founding in 1977, the Academy of Medicine has made a difference in the lives of students at the Boonshoft School of Medicine.

Thanks in part to the academy’s dedicated annual and life members, the school remains a catalyst for better health care by preparing outstanding physicians. The organization supports medical education by providing student loans and awarding student and faculty achievement. Through membership, the Academy has circulated $2 million in student loans, saving more than 400 students the high costs of commercial loans.

The general admission cost to attend the event is $75; $50 for those 18 and under; and $25 for Boonshoft School of Medicine students and residents. Register for the event at http://medicine.wright.edu/academy-lecture.

For more information, contact Nicki Crellin at nicki.crellin@wright.edu or 937 245-7634.