Melissa Barlow ’87
Melissa Barlow ’87 was selected to the officiating crew for the NCAA women’s basketball Final Four for the 12th time in her career this past season. She called the semifinal game between eventual national champion South Carolina and North Carolina State.
Barlow has officiated on the floor in 11 Final Four games and worked as the alternate at the scorer’s table one other time. She was the senior official of the 11-person Final Four crew for the most-watched women’s Final Four in history, with viewers drawn by Iowa star Caitlin Clark and South Carolina’s undefeated season.
Mindful of staying in sports officiating when she no longer wants to run up and down the court for the better part of an hour, Barlow has now trained as an NCAA football replay official who works from the booth. This football season, she’ll work in the role of communicator in the booth in the Big Ten Conference after wrapping up last season on the crew for the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium in New York.