Broomall native Rene Portland, the former women’s basketball coach at Penn State who was a key player during Immaculata’s championship era of the 1970s, has died at the age of 65, writes Mel Greenberg for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Portland died after a three-year battle with cancer. Her death comes less than a year after being inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

She started her coaching career alongside Hall of Fame coach Cathy Rush in 1976 and ran her first program at Saint Joseph’s the next year. After two years at SJU and two years at Colorado, she was recruited by Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, who was also athletic director at the time.

Portland stayed in Happy Valley for nearly three decades, winning 72 percent of her games and becoming a four-time Coach of the Year in the Big Ten and two-time Coach of the Year on the national level.

“She will be remembered as someone who gave her life to her family, her teams, and her women,” said former Virginia coach Debbie Ryan.

Read more about Rene Portland in the Philadelphia Inquirer by clicking here.