DENVER – MSU Denver has for decades been a leader in providing equal opportunities for women in intercollegiate athletics.
 
Today is the 17th installment of a 52-part tribute by Roadrunners Athletics to pioneers and leaders in intercollegiate athletics at MSU Denver.

Each Thursday, a key female figure in Roadrunners athletics history will be recognized.
 
Today, legendary soccer player and coach Adrianne Almaraz-Pietz is featured.
 
Almaraz-Pietz was a captain on MSU Denver's 2004 Division II national championship team and was an assistant coach for the 2006 national champions. She later became the Roadrunners' head coach in 2008 and compiled a nine-year record of 124-38-32 while leading the team to seven national tournaments, two regular-season conference championships and another RMAC Tournament title.

Pietz played her junior and senior seasons at MSU Denver. In 2004, Pietz helped lead the Roadrunners to a 25-1-0 overall record and 23 straight victories to end the season, culminating in the national championship. She was a first team All-RMAC and a second team all-Midwest Region selection after starting all 26 games and totaling 12 points, including four goals. As a 2003 junior, Pietz earned first team all-region and second team All-RMAC accolades.
 
Title IX, the groundbreaking law prohibiting sex-based discrimination at schools that receive funding from the federal government, went into effect just over 50 years ago – on June 23, 1972.