Long Beach Stingrays

The Long Beach Stingrays was a women's professional basketball team. It existed for only the 1997–98 season, and was a member of the American Basketball League (ABL).

Long Beach Stingrays

Founded	1997
League	American Basketball League
Team history	1997–1998 (one season)
Based in	Long Beach, California
Arena	Walter Pyramid, California State University, Long Beach
Head coach	Maura McHugh
Championships	none

The Stingrays played most of their home games at the Walter Pyramid on the campus of California State University, Long Beach; however, one home game was played at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (now the Honda Center). Their head coach was Maura McHugh.

The Stingrays' biggest star player was their center, Yolanda Griffith. Other notable Stingrays included Beverly Williams, Michelle M. Marciniak, and the former Olympic athlete Venus Lacy.

In what turned out to be the team's only season, the Stingrays made it all the way to the ABL's championship round. They beat the defending champion Columbus Quest in the first two games (both in Long Beach) but lost the final three games in Columbus, and with that, the series.

Despite their strong first season, the Stingrays were viewed largely with indifference by area fans. They had the league's worst attendance; for most of the season, they attracted crowds in the hundreds. Citing anemic season ticket sales and weak corporate sponsorship, league officials shuttered the Stingrays in August 1998. The rest of the league followed in December.

Griffith, like most of the ABL's star players, eventually joined the competing Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) Griffith went on to a long career in the WNBA, most notably for the Sacramento Monarchs. As for McHugh, she has coached various professional and college teams.

Team record

Regular season

Season	W	L	Win %	Result
1997–1998	26	18	.591	2^nd Place, Western Conference

Post-season

ABL Playoffs First-Round

Date	Winning team	Losing team	Score	Notes
21 February 1998	Long Beach Stingrays	Colorado Xplosion	96–72
22 February 1998	Colorado	Long Beach	88–68
25 February 1998	Long Beach	Colorado	92–61	Long Beach wins series, 2–1

ABL Semifinals

Date	Winning team	Losing team	Score	Notes
27 February 1998	Long Beach Stingrays	Portland Power	72–62
1 March 1998	Long Beach	Portland	70–69	Long Beach wins series, 2–0

ABL Championship Series

Date	Winning team	Losing team	Score	Notes
8 March 1998	Long Beach Stingrays	Columbus Quest	65–62
9 March 1998	Long Beach	Columbus	71–61
11 March 1998	Columbus	Long Beach	70–61
11 March 1998	Columbus	Long Beach	68–53
15 March 1998	Columbus	Long Beach	86–81	Columbus wins ABL Championship, 3–2

League honors

Yolanda Griffith

• ABL Defensive Player of the Year, 1997–98
• All-ABL First Team, 1997–98

References

• . Los Angeles Times. May 6, 1998. Archived from the original on 2015-12-02. Retrieved 26 December 2015. Article headline, author, date, and lead paragraph, in reverse chronological order, each linked to page of the article.