Our sympathies and prayers go out to the family of girls’ basketball coaching legend Earnest Riggins Sr., who passed away last week at age 80.
Riggins enjoyed a remarkable coaching career at the high school and collegiate levels, but he will be best known as being the architect of the great East St. Louis Lincoln Tigerettes program that was dominant in the state of Illinois in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Before the great St. Joseph’s Academy dynasty of the early 1990s featuring Kristin Folkl and Mollie Pierick, there was Earnest Riggins and the Lincoln Tigerettes.
Before the great Gateway Tech dynasty of the late 1990s featuring the coaching excellence of Sherman Curtis and a host a great players, there was Earnest Riggins and the Lincoln Tigerettes.
Before the current Incarnate Word Academy dynasty of the early 21st century with coach Dan Rolfes and stars Napheesa Collier and Felicia Chester, there was Earnest Riggins at the Lincoln Tigerettes.
Riggins had an incredible run of success at Lincoln as its head coach from 1978-83. During that short span, the Tigerettes posted a staggering record of 148 victories and eight losses. Riggins led Lincoln to six Illinois regional championships, five sectional championships, three Final Four berths, two second-place finishes and a Class AA state championship in 1980.
The 1980 Tigerettes were one of the best teams in the history of the St. Louis metro area. They finished the season with a 31-0 record and won their four state-playoff games by an average margin of 35 points, including a 64-47 victory over powerhouse program Chicago Marshall in the state championship game.
Lincoln’s lineup included a host of talented players, led by Barbara Gilmore, Debra Powell, Crystal Coleman, Justin Moore and a young two-sport superstar named Jackie Joyner. You might have heard of her. Jackie was the leading scorer and rebounder for the Tigerettes.
Riggins’ final teams at Lincoln in the early 80’s were led by Toni Wallace and superstar forward Tina Hutchinson, who was a prep All-American and the Parade Magazine National Player of the Year in 1983.
After the 1983 season, Riggins left Lincoln to become a Division I collegiate head coach at San Diego State University. He spent six seasons at SDSU, where he posted a record of 118-67. He led the Aztecs to four 20-victory seasons, two NCAA Tournament berths and a berth in the championship game of the WNIT. Hutchinson and Wallace followed Riggins to San Diego. Hutchinson averaged 29.9 points a game as a freshman and enjoyed one of the best freshman seasons in the history of collegiate women’s basketball.
Riggins returned to the area, where he coached at MICDS from 1992-96. He also started the St. Louis Crusaders, a summer grassroots girls’ basketball program that produced many top players from the area and enjoyed success in AAU tournaments around the country for nearly 20 years.
The visitation will be held at Faith Miracle Temple Church (5320 North Hwy 67 in Florissant) from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Friday, July 28. The funeral service will be held at 12 p.m.
