When North Harford's Lin James hits a coaching milestone, she’d rather keep it quiet, but she was as excited as any other Lady Vol when University of Tennessee coach Pat Summitt reached her 1,000th career victory last night.

James, the winningest girls basketball coach in the Baltimore area in her 42nd season with the Hawks, graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1965, nine years before Summitt took over the program, but she still has a little of that orange left in her bloodstream

“It’s just remarkable. I think the attainment of this goal -- just like me, there’s longevity -- but when you look at her winning percentage, that’s the thing that’s staggering.”

After last night’s win, Summitt’s record is 1,000-187. That means she has won 82.4 percent of the games she’s coached in 35 years.

James won her 500th game in 2004 and now has more than 550 wins. (She won't say exactly how many and I hate to admit it, but I've lost track.) Since James played at Tennessee, the game has changed a lot, but she feels she was in on the start of it all.

“We were on the edge of getting ready to roll with women’s basketball. It was before we had any money or there was any designation, but we played a lot of basketball at that time. What a fun time it was. We’ve come a long way in many regards.”

James emulates many of the aspects of Summitt's coaching style, especially her no-stars approach and her willingness to adjust her game plan to her players' talents rather than forcing them into one style that might not fit.

“I've read every book that's ever been written about her," said James, "and I always try to read one before my season starts, because I think her motivation, her intensity are just unparalleled. I’ve seen her sit and get in the face of Chamique Holdsclaw. There’s no distinction with her. If you don’t do the job that she expects, then you get what she dishes out.”

James, who has experienced a lot of the ups and downs of the coming of age of women's sports, also enoys the fact that a woman is the first Division I coach to reach the 1,000 mark.

"It speaks volumes to me. Across the board, you can see more attendance at women’s games. The game has been stepped up a notch in both skill and interest and even on the college campuses. It’s wonderful that she’s a woman… What a fun time. It’s great for women and it’s great for women’s basketball.”