Durkin, Juanita Lariscy - Basketball, 1979
Mrs. Durkin played sports in Savannah for approximately forty years and distinguished herself as one of the city’s all-time outstanding female athletes. She was a starting forward on the Savannah High School undefeated girls team from 1936-41 and was consistently the high-point scorer. Juanita was also a soccer player, swimmer, and diver (high board and low board) in her high school days, and was a cheerleader for the football team.
Each year she attended Savannah High, Durkin was chosen the school’s outstanding female athlete. The girls basketball team went undefeated the four seasons she played, crediting her with approximately 1,000 points during these seasons. Standing at only 5’6”, Juanita dazzled opponents with her deadly left-handed hook shot, averaging about 30 points per game. In one contest, Durkin scored a remarkable 75 points.
During and after her high school days, Durkin played softball on the city’s leading female teams. The Stubbs Sea Horses, D.L. Henderson, Union Bag, the Niras, and the Wagon Wheel were among the prominent winning teams on which she played.