DES MOINES, Iowa — Former Drake women's basketball player and assistant coach Lisa Brinkmeyer VanDeventer, 48, died Thursday after a courageous year-plus battle with brain cancer.
 
Brinkmeyer was an Iowa icon starting as a three-sport Iowa girls high school standout to a stellar career on the Drake women's basketball team, while later serving as an administrator with the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union.
 
Brinkmeyer was named 1993 Miss Iowa Basketball after leading Hubbard-Radcliffe High School to a perfect season capped off by winning the final 6-on-6 championship game ever played in the Iowa basketball state tournament. Brinkmeyer finished her high school career with a staggering 3,615 points. 
 
She also earned first-team Class 1A All-State honors in volleyball in 1991 and 1992 and led Hubbard-Radcliffe to a runner-up finish in the 1992 Class 1A state tournament.
 
Brinkmeyer played at Drake University, under head coach Lisa Bluder, earning All-Missouri Valley Conference honorable mention honors as a junior and senior, and helping lead the team to MVC regular-season and postseason titles in 1997 and 1998. She also was named to the 1995 MVC All-Tournament team after guiding the Bulldogs to the MVC tournament championship.

Brinkmeyer's admiration for Drake and the women's basketball program was shared by Drake's head coach Allison Pohlman.

"We all miss Lisa already," said Pohlman. 'She had a major influence on the culture of Drake women's basketball and taught us all so much about being True Blue. She was always the consummate connector to Drake. She was one of the funniest people I had the privilege to know…just so intrinsically likeable and personable."

"We will continue to celebrate her life and impact on the game of women's basketball, she was a premier ambassador and representative of our sport and did so much to further the opportunities for girls pursuing their dreams in the state of Iowa." 

Brinkmeyer was a key player for Drake teams that made three straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament under Bluder.

"Heaven gained a whole lot of laughter," said Bluder who served as head coach at Drake from 1991-2000 before becoming head coach at the University of Iowa. "That's one of the things I will miss about Lisa. She had the best laugh; it took over her whole body and was infectious. Lisa was a whole lot of fun, but she was also a great connector."

"A connector of people and keeping people together during hard times, and during good times. The biggest gift we can give to Lisa right now is to make a new friend, hug a stranger, and raise a glass. I'm sure her dad, Richard, welcomed her home with open arms." 

Brinkmeyer also excelled in the classroom at Drake, being chosen to the MVC Scholar-Athlete teams in 1995 (honorable mention) as well as 1997 and 1998, earning second-team honors both times.

She was an assistant basketball coach at Drake alongside Bluder and current Iowa assistant coach Jan Jensen from 1998 to 2000, then joined the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union, where she worked for more than two decades as an assistant director in charge of volleyball, golf, and soccer.

"Lisa was the quintessential teammate in every realm of her life," Jensen said. "Whether she was starring on the court, or working in her career, Lisa was always most proud of what her teammates accomplished, even more than anything she did herself." 

"Lisa was the embodiment of The Iowa Girl," the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union said in a statement Friday. "The IGHSAU and its Board of Directors express their sympathies to the family of our beloved colleague."

A revered figure both on and off the basketball court, Brinkmeyer was also an influential person in organizing various Drake events, whether that be former team gatherings, alumni games or other get-to-togethers. Her ability to connect Bulldogs of past and present was one of the reasons Brinkmeyer was so beloved.

"She simply made everyone around her better and she made them feel so special," Jensen continued. "Lisa was a fast friend to all, and her love and loyalty to her friends and to her beloved Drake University was always evident. She built an incomparable legacy, one that will forever be emulated."

When Brinkmeyer was first diagnosed with cancer, Drake alumni, boosters, fans and former letterwinners became a part of "Brink's Bench" by purchasing a T-shirt that supported her many expenses traveling to Iowa City as well as their medical costs.

During the Drake-Iowa women's basketball game last Nov. 13 at the Knapp Center members of both coaching staffs wore "Brink's Bench" T-shirts.

"She inspired every one of us for her fight, for her friendship and for her loyalty and for her love of the Bulldogs," added Bluder.

The family has requested memorial contributions be made to the Lisa Brinkmeyer Women's Basketball Endowed Fund, benefiting the Drake Women's Basketball team at: https://alumni.drake.edu/giveonline.