3 women make officiating history as first all-female crew for conference

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (WTOV) — History will be made Monday night in the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference.

For the first time, three women will officiate a varsity basketball game.

Gina Hicks, Maclaine Murad, and Meghan Scott have been basketball officials for several years, but never together during the same game.

That will change during the OVAC Class 4A semifinal between Union Local and Harrison Central.

It will be the first time in OVAC history that three women will officiate together in a varsity basketball game.

And the conference is more than proud to make it happen.

For the OVAC, it’s a milestone,” Assistant Basketball Commissioner Butch Minkemeyer said. “It took a long time, 5,6,7,8 years to get one varsity game, and I know that at least two of these three girls have worked 20 varsity games. We're trying to get the best officials on the floor for the OVAC, and we're trying just to raise our numbers and get the officiating better.

Murad and Scott got to work together last Wednesday at Martins Ferry, and their passion for officiating was on full display.

"First of all, it’s very exciting because we get to officiate a girls’ semifinal basketball game,” Scott said. “With this being the first official female crew, I’m excited to get out there and see what our crew has to offer."

"There will be all-female officials, which is exciting,” Murad said. “Just being back on the court and helping these student-athletes is a great opportunity.”

For Hicks, it won’t be the first time she's been a part of an OVAC milestone. In the spring, she was a part of the first league umpiring crew with three women, but her excitement level for this one is still high.

Fifteen years ago, when I was playing in the OVAC, there was no female officials at all,” she said. “And now, today, we're able to have an all-female crew. Words can't explain how honored and excited I am for this.

According to reports, only 25% of all high school officials in the country are women. Minkemeyer notes how relentlessly the conference has been on trying to recruit new officials. He says he is proud of the successes the three of them have on the floor.

"The OVAC has been very proactive on recruiting officials, be it men or women. We've been very fortunate to have five young ladies who have taken up officiating, and three of them have really risen to the top," he said.

While this is a meaningful accomplishment for Scott, she is confident that a feat like this is only the beginning for female officials.

“You know, female officials are an up-and-coming thing everywhere, but we're not done yet. But it’s really exciting to see where we can start," she said.

And all three of them working the game want to let any young person know, male or female, that if they're skeptical about getting into officiating, they shouldn't be.

"Get out there and do it. It's fun,” Murad said. “You’re out there and have an adrenaline rush, it's great just to be back on the court."

"Don’t be afraid to reach out to anyone that's on the floor, anyone that’s anywhere, in your school," Scott said.

"I would definitely take the chance, try it out, you won’t be disappointed," Murad said.