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Syracuse Athletics has established a committee to retire a woman’s jersey, Director of Athletics John Wildhack said in a press conference Wednesday. He mentioned Tiana Mangakahia as “worthy of consideration” to have her No. 4 jersey retired by SU.

The committee, which includes Chief Communications Officer Sue Edson, Deputy Director of Athletics Andrew Goodrich and Associate Athletic Director Salatha Willis, has a set of criteria for determining which jerseys to retire. 

“I wish we would’ve done it, could’ve done it sooner,” Wildhack said. “But we’re absolutely committed to it.”

Wildhack and SU have received criticism in the past for not retiring a women’s jersey. SU sponsors 11 Division I women’s sports but has yet to retire a jersey in school history. There have been 21 jerseys retired in school history, 15 men’s basketball and six football ones.

Wildhack said the delay is because the athletic department wants to have a ceremony in front of fans rather than in an empty stadium due to the pandemic. Syracuse basketball did not allow fans at games all season, though three lacrosse games so far have featured a limited student crowd.

“I don’t want to do it until we can have fans back in the stands so we can celebrate their achievements appropriately and our community can celebrate with them,” Wildhack said.

Mangakahia has been a popular candidate among fans and former SU players for jersey retirement. The point guard led the nation in assists as a sophomore before becoming the Orange’s all-time assists leader her junior year. She was diagnosed with breast cancer the summer before her senior year and was forced to sit out the entire year.

Wildhack described Mangakahia’s journey over the last two years as “courageous” and “inspirational.” She was declared cancer-free in November 2019 and started 20 games this season. 

The point guard played in her final game for Syracuse on Tuesday when the Orange fell to UConn in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. She said she’ll be entering her name into the WNBA Draft. Postgame, head coach Quentin Hillsman broke down into tears when reflecting on Mangakahia’s time at SU. 

“She’s just a really tough kid,” Hillsman said. “(She had) every reason to quit and she didn’t quit, she came back and gave it everything she had … toughest kid I ever coached.”

Published on March 24, 2021 at 6:02 pm

aekaylor@syr.edu | @cincinnallie