Hall of Fame
A 1983-84 American Women’s Sports Federation (AWSF) All-American, LuAnn Ketter Mills helped guide the Pitt-Johnstown women’s basketball team to a spot in the 1981 Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Final Four and was a leader on the team that saw the Lady Cats ranked in the nation’s top-10 all four years, including holding the top-spot in the country for seven straight weeks in 1982-83.
After winning three consecutive section championships and earning a spot on the 1979-80 Pittsburgh Press Terrific 20 Team at Jeannette High School, Ms. Ketter Mills joined Pitt-Johnstown hall of fame Head Coach Clyde Horner’s Lady Cat squad and promptly helped lead the team to a 26-4 overall record and spot in the 1981 AIAW Final Four with a victory over Elizabethtown College in the Eastern Regional Finals.
The following year, Pitt-Johnstown climbed as high a fifth in the national polls and was one of just 16 teams from across the country to receive a bid in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Despite suffering a narrow one-point overtime loss to Norfolk State in the regional finals, Ms. Ketter Mills, along with teammates Sue Shimkus and Auddie Truitt locked up spots on the all-tournament team.
In 1982-83, Pitt-Johnstown Hall of Famer Jodi Gault took over as head coach of the Lady Cats, and Ms. Ketter Mills was one of five starters who averaged double figures in scoring to help the team hold the No. 1 ranking in the country for seven straight weeks. Pitt-Johnstown closed out the year at 23-2, with the only losses coming to Division I Youngstown State and Knoxville in the second round of the postseason.
As a senior, Ms. Ketter Mills, along with three other starters, were named AWSF All-Americans after guiding the Lady Cats to the 1983-84 Great Lake Regional Championship and a spot in the Division III national quarterfinals in Chicago. Along with being selected to the Great Lakes All-Region Team, Ms. Ketter Mills was also named to the 1983 Mountain Cat Classic All-Tournament Team and earned the Pitt-Johnstown Outstanding Achievement in Basketball Award in June 1984.
She closed out her Lady Cat career ranked fifth on the all-time rebound list and currently sits 26th on the list.
The Jeannette, Pa. native graduated from Pitt-Johnstown in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering Technology.
Ms. Ketter Mills spent six years as an Electrical Design Engineer with West Penn Power, before taking a sabbatical to raise her children Kalie, Kirstie, and Kane.
Later, she began a vending machine business and served as treasurer of the Parent-Teacher Association at Hempfield Area High School.
In 2007, Ms. Ketter Mills began working as an assistant basketball coach, substitute teacher, and math lab teacher at Greensburg Central Catholic High School.
She took over as head basketball coach at Jeannette High School in 2010 and led her team to three section titles and a Class A Runner-up finish in the WPIAL Playoffs.
For the previous nine years, Ms. Ketter Mills has been employed by PennDot District 12 Engineering as a Transportation Construction Inspector, working with utilities, engineering firms, and customers on permit-related projects, ensuring compliance with specifications with the goal of keeping the motoring public and Pennsylvania roads safe.
Ms. Ketter Mills, a 2019 inductee into the Jeannette High School Athletics Hall of Fame, resides in Greensburg and remains active with her church and spending time with her family.
“To sum up the Honor ..Humility..& Gratitude in one word ...SLAMDUNK,” Ms. Ketter Mills said.
