“Basketball taught me so much about competing well — against myself, to be the best I could be; and against opponents, to be the best our team could be. It allowed me to explore what sort of a leader I could be.”

BOONE, N.C. — Barbara Krause, deputy general counsel at Appalachian State University, was one of 22 inductees welcomed into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2018. “I am deeply honored to be selected for induction into my home state’s basketball hall of fame,” she said.

Krause led Freeport High School, in Freeport, Maine, to a Class C State Championship her senior year in 1976. “Forty-two years later, it remains one of the most exciting, most special, most formative events of my life,” she said.

She averaged 22.3 points and 14.9 rebounds as a first-year player at Bowdoin College. “Bowdoin College gave me an amazing freshman year, both academically and athletically,” Krause said.

She then transferred to Duke University, where the two-time captain set — and still holds — the school record of 24 rebounds in a single game. Her average of 9.9 rebounds per contest is the second-best in Duke history and tied for seventh-best in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) history.

Krause went on to play professionally for two years in Germany before earning her Juris Doctorate from Cornell Law School — the law school of Cornell University.

While in Germany, she played in the Basketball Bundesliga League (BBL) — the highest league in the country. “Having the opportunity to live in a different country, to become fluent in a different language, and to travel on my own and see some of the world — those experiences gave me perspectives that I value to this day,” she said.

She began her legal career as an associate and later as a partner in a Portland, Maine, law firm, where she represented schools and towns.

Reflecting on her former basketball career, Krause said, “Back then, women's basketball was not an NCAA sport. We played in the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW), which was organized at the state level. So, we regularly played all the North Carolina schools — not only ACC foes UNC at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, but East Carolina University, UNC at Asheville, Western Carolina University, and, yes, Appalachian!

“I played against Appalachian great Carol Almond, whose retired number hangs in the Holmes Convocation Center. Appalachian handed Duke a one-point upset in my last game at Duke — so I have always had great respect for this feisty school in the mountains.”

Krause has experienced what she calls “humbling honors,” including being named Duke’s ACC Women’s Basketball Legend in 2009, as well as being inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1999 and the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

Her fellow Class of 2018 inductees are Brenda Beckwith, Paul Belanger, Jim Bessey, Cindy Blodgett, Sandi Carver, Dean Erickson, Peter Hamlin, Jeff Hart, Bill McAvoy, Delmont “Del” Merrill, Bill Obermeyer, Keith Ogden, Leroy Patterson, Joe Russo and Rick Woods.

Additionally, Jim Beaudry, Bill Fletcher, Dwight Hunter, Elwood “Bimbo” Pinkham, Thaxter Trafton and Arthur “Artie” Warren were inducted into the hall as Legends of the Game.

The honored team for the hall’s Class of 2018 is the 1960 boys basketball team of Lewiston High School, which capped an undefeated season with a Class A state title.

The induction ceremony will be held Aug. 19 at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, Maine.

About the Office of General Counsel

Appalachian State University’s Office of General Counsel provides legal services for the university. These services include assisting in achievement of university goals within the framework of state and federal laws, as well as policies and plans adopted by the Board of Governors, UNC System President, Board of Trustees and Chancellor; and compliance with applicable local, state, federal and international laws in all activities undertaken by the university. The education and training of university officers and employees to prevent or appropriately resolve disputes affecting the university's operations are also objectives of the Office of General Counsel. Learn more at https://generalcounsel.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.

What do you think?

Share your feedback on this story.