The First Gold Ball: Honoring the Madison West Women Who Made History

When Peggy Mueller first moved to Madison from Saskatchewan in the 1970s, she quickly learned that Wisconsin didn’t have the same culture of competitive women's sports.

The emphasis for girls in Madison was on cooperative play rather than competition — a foreign concept for Mueller, a former college basketball player with plenty of experience competing for titles.

“Schools were hesitant about girls being competitive,” Mueller said. “It was kind of depressing in that sense.”

In fact, the first ever set of Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association rules governing girls sports in 1963 explicitly discouraged spectators, and banned organized cheering. By the early 70’s those rules had been relaxed and a girls Big 8 basketball conference was established, but without playoffs at the end of the season.

Then in 1976, just a few years after Mueller arrived to teach at MMSD, the WIAA held a girls state basketball tournament for the first time ever. She was asked to coach the girls varsity team at Madison West High School and jumped at the opportunity.

“The players I had were small, quick and very basketball oriented — a few had grown up playing basketball in the playgrounds with boys,” Mueller said. “So they were used to playing basketball, but they weren't used to really getting in shape or working on basketball fundamentals.”

By drilling fundamentals like ball handling, plus conditioning to run a full-court press, the Regents won nearly every game on their schedule. They were led by Mary Henderson ‘76, who teammates said could handle the ball and take a jump shot better than many of the boys.

“Describing that 1975-76 season is sometimes beyond words, it was really a dream come true,” Debbie Gaugert ‘76, a guard on the Regent’s squad said. “There was a different level of intensity that season knowing we might get the chance to play at the first ever girls state tournament in the UW Field House, where most of us had seen the Badgers play.”

West finished the regular season with a 14-1 record before winning each of their four playoff games by an average of 30 points — with their closest win over La Follette by seven points in the sectional final that sent the Regents to state.

When they made it to the Field House for their first round matchup in the state tournament against Badger High School, Gaugert remembers being nervous when she first took the court. But thanks to the guidance of Coach Mueller and the support of a raucous West student section, those nerves faded quickly.

“There’s nothing like the feeling of taking that court for the first time with the bright lights,” Anne Saeman ’76, a forward who went on to play college basketball with the Badgers said. “It was 50 years ago, but it’s one of those moments I still think about a lot.”

The Regents won that contest 63-46, before going on to beat Appleton West in the semifinals and finally taking home the first ever gold ball for girls basketball after defeating Neenah 59-46 in the championship game.

Students and fans rushed the court when the final buzzer sounded to celebrate the accomplishment with the team.

“Everything came together in that last victory, and the floor was full of happy people as we cut down the basketball net,” Gaugert said. “Whenever I think back to it I still get goosebumps.”

For Mueller, a “nervous competitor,” winning the state championship was a relief. When she thinks back to that season, her favorite memories are of the little moments rather than the final hurrah.

“I was never good at developing a superstar player, but I always wanted to blend kids together to make a strong team,” she said. “We were able to bring together a group of girls who weren't necessarily good friends at the start of the season and form a bond between all of us.”

Now, 50 years after that first state tournament, girls basketball looks a lot different. Instead of having to share uniforms with the volleyball team like the ’76 Regents had to, there are dedicated leagues for girls at any age.

“There is now a great deal of opportunity, recognition and pride in women’s sports,” Mueller said. “I don’t think that was the case in the early 70’s, when not as many women were encouraged to be great athletes.”

Today MMSD offers more than 12 girls varsity sports across our schools, including basketball, hockey and wrestling.

That attitude was obvious at the 2026 WIAA Girls State Tournament when Mueller, Gaugert and Saeman were honored for their accomplishment 50 years ago.

After being recognized at mid-court, the trio was treated to a weekend of basketball.

“The girls are stronger and faster than we were, their skills are outstanding now — plus the growth of the fan base for girls and women's sports has been fantastic,” Saemen said. “There’s still nothing quite like the feeling of a high school state tournament.”