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Private funeral held for former Lady Vols coach Pat Summitt

Posted at 7:07 PM, Jun 30, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-30 22:07:56-04
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A private funeral service for former Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt was held Thursday.
 
Erin Freeman, who has been acting as a spokeswoman for the Summitt family this week, confirmed that the funeral took place Thursday in Clarksville, Tennessee. When Summitt died Tuesday at the age of 64, her family had issued a statement saying a private ceremony would be held in Middle Tennessee without disclosing a date or exact location.
 
Tennessee coach Holly Warlick, who played for Summitt and worked as an assistant on her staff for 27 seasons, tweeted Thursday that "She has been laid to rest. ... Godspeed Pat. ... Godspeed. U r home."
 
Former Tennessee players Michelle Marciniak and Chamique Holdsclaw also discussed the ceremony via social media.
 
Holdsclaw said in an Instagram post that the service was "so beautiful."
 
"It was so good to see our Lady Vol family," Holdsclaw wrote. "We are going to miss you in the physical, but we should all know we have an angel pulling for us 24/7. I'm going to miss the great hugs you give. Sleep in peace."
 
Holdsclaw noted that former Tennessee player Michelle Marciniak gave one of the eulogies. Marciniak tweeted that "eulogizing Pat Summitt today (was) made easier with LVFL (Lady Vol For Life) support. Pat told us, 'Trust me,' and we did."
 
Summitt won eight national titles and a Division I record 1,098 games in 38 seasons at Tennessee before stepping down in 2012, one year after announcing she had early-onset dementia, Alzheimer's type.
 
A public ceremony to celebrate Summitt's life is scheduled for July 14 at Thompson-Boling Arena on Tennessee's campus. Thompson-Boling Arena includes the Lady Volunteers' home court, which is named after Summitt.