More Pat Summitt ties from Lady Vols join Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame

Michelle Marciniak , Gwen Jackson and Dan Fleser all have something in common – none of them were born in Knoxville, yet all three of them made it their home eventually.

On Thursday, all three were honored by the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame . Marciniak, a former Lady Vols basketball star point guard, and Fleser, the longtime Lady Vols beat writer for Knox News, were inducted into the GKSHOF 2024 class. Jackson, a former Lady Vols star, was given the Pat Summitt Ignite Greatness Award.

"It goes without saying, but Pat Summitt had a profound influence on my life," Marciniak told Knox News at the induction Thursday. "To think about dreaming of playing at Tennessee when I was in my backyard to life coming completely full circle and now I'm back in Knoxville. An honor such as the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame is just flat out special."

Marciniak and Fleser were inducted along with Dan Brooks, Connie Calloway, Eddie Courtney, Victoria Gillenwater, Russ Johnson, David Martin, Heath Shuler and John Wright.

It wasn't a surprise to Fleser that he was joined by a former Lady Vol with how many great players Summitt coached. He was there to document the dynasty Summitt built, covering all but one of her eight national championships – one of which was won by Marciniak. Fleser, a native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, has also been inducted to the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s Hall of Fame.

When Fleser was inducted to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association's Hall of Fame in April, that was about his career. This one was about Knoxville. Knox News was the fourth paper he had worked for in seven years when he arrived in 1988, and it turned out to be his last stop.

"I never, at that time, envisioned planting my flag here," Fleser said. "So this one really means a lot in the sense that this is where I dropped anchor and put my roots. There's a special feeling about going into this hall, because it's like the place where I decided to live has kind of embraced me back."

Jackson, a native of Eufaula, Alabama, eventually returned to Knoxville after her professional career. She started coaching Austin-East girls basketball in July 2012 until she had to step away after the 2018 season due to health challenges. She returned as the Austin-East coach in 2022 and still coaches there now.

Her roots are here now with her daughter and son. She even started an AAU program in Knoxville called TKO Elite. For Jackson, being honored with an award named for her late coach means everything.

"It's bigger than just me," Jackson said. "Pat taught me a lot about life, and I try to give those same tools to the young people that I have a chance to reach and try to help them chase their dreams. It's hard to be a Lady Vol and not carry the things that you learned here over into real life."

2024 CLASS: Meet 2024 Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame, including Heath Shuler, Michelle Marciniak

Marciniak, who was born in Maryland and grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania, came back to Knoxville in 2020 seeking the community she loved. She was gone for 24 years, but many of the people she knew from her playing days were still there when she returned.

"It's a special community, bond of people that is in Knoxville," Marciniak said. "It comes from playing basketball. It comes from sports. It comes from being at university like University of Tennessee, which is a very special place to be."

Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll . If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: More Pat Summitt ties from Lady Vols join Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame