Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt announced Wednesday that she is stepping down from her position.
Summitt's announcement comes less than eight months after she revealed that she has early onset dementia.
Summitt, who has more wins (1,098) than anyone in college basketball history, will be replaced by Volunteers assistant Holly Warlick. Summitt will become head coach emeritus.
Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw released the following statement about Summitt's announcement:
"While I'm certainly sad to hear that Pat is stepping down as the head coach at the University of Tennessee, I think today is really a time to celebrate Pat's amazing accomplishments and everything she has done to help bring the sport of women's basketball to where it is today.
"The word 'legend' can sometimes be overused in sports, but in Pat's case, that's exactly what she is. Pat has set the bar so high for all of us, not only with the success her teams have enjoyed on the court, but the way she has carried herself off the court, with such class, dignity and grace. It's a standard of excellence that likely will never be matched in our game, and I feel fortunate and honored to have had the opportunity to coach against her, and to learn from her during my career.
"All of us at Notre Dame wish for her good health and happiness in her new role as head coach emeritus at Tennessee. We know that the Lady Vol program will remain strong and vibrant with Holly Warlick as head coach, and we wish her much success."
