RALEIGH - After 31 years at N.C. State, building Wolfpack sports programs and relentlessly promoting women's athletics, Nora Lynn Finch soon will have a new address and new challenge.

ACC commissioner John Swofford announced Monday that Finch has been selected the league's associate commissioner for women's basketball operations and senior woman administrator.

Finch replaces Bernadette McGlade, who last month was appointed commissioner of the Atlantic 10 Conference.

"I'm really excited, but I do have mixed emotions about leaving N.C. State," Finch said in an interview Monday. "I love the people at State, and it has been such a great place to work.

"At the same time, I feel the programs I have overseen at State are as healthy as they've ever been, and I have the opportunity to work for the best conference in the country. It's a dream come true."

Finch, called a women's athletics "pioneer" by Wolfpack athletic director Lee Fowler, was senior associate director and senior woman administrator at N.C. State. Her responsibilities included the administration of women's basketball, men's and women's golf, men's soccer and postseason appearances.

Finch is a member of the NCAA women's basketball issues committee and has served on several other NCAA committees, including the Division I Management Council and Division I Championships Cabinet.

"Nora Lynn's varied experiences at the national level, her numerous contributions to the ACC and her lengthy and very successful tenure at N.C. State make her a superb fit for this position," Swofford said in a statement. "She is a proven administrator -- effective, knowledgeable and energetic."

Finch, whose new job begins Aug. 15, said one of her first duties would be hiring a supervisor of officials for ACC basketball. She will oversee operation of the ACC Women's Basketball Tournament and basketball scheduling. She said she will work to increase television exposure for basketball and other women's sports.

Finch, a member of the National Women's Athletic Hall of Fame, said she has had several opportunities to leave N.C. State for other positions through the years but never made a change.

"But the things John Swofford said blew me away," she said. "It was an offer I couldn't refuse."

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