Rene Portland compiled a 40-20 record in two seasons as CU's women's basketball coach.
BOULDER — Former Colorado women's basketball coach Rene Portland, who helped establish a competitive foundation for the program and set the stage for long-term success, died Sunday after a three-year battle with cancer.
Portland was 65.
Portland coached at Colorado for two seasons (1978-79 and 1979-80), compiling a 40-20 record that included a 19-4 mark at home. Her second CU team won the Mountain Division of the Intermountain Conference and advanced to the semifinals of the Region VII playoffs.
Portland left Colorado in 1980 for Penn State, where she coached for 27 years.