Ellington

Tucked away in the southeastern corner of the state, in Greene County, is the town of McLain, home to fewer than 1,000 residents.

Ruthie Bolton, 46, was raised here, 16th of 20 brothers and sisters, and she credits her rural upbringing in helping her become a WNBA all-star and two-time Olympic gold medalist.

"I love home. I love the South, the qualities and the things that I learned growing up in the South, especially coming from a large family," Bolton said.

Bolton is one of the seven 2014 Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inductees named Oct. 28. Though she had a stellar basketball career that lasted more than 15 seasons, in both Europe and the WNBA, she didn't see herself playing professionally when she was young.

"I didn't think the basketball thing could be a career for me until my junior or senior year in high school," Bolton said. "I just played because I loved it."

She wasn't highly recruited out of high school, but did win a scholarship to Auburn University, where she led the Tigers to three Southeastern Conference titles and four NCAA tournament appearances. Bolton continued playing professionally and was a part of the inaugural WNBA league in 1997, shortly after she won a gold medal as a member of the 1996 Women's Olympic Team. She was also a member of the 2000 gold-medal Olympic team.

These days, Bolton lives in Elk Grove, Calif., and focuses on giving back to the community as the national spokesperson for the WNBA's Play Fit Stay Fit Youth Development Program and in her nonprofit organization, The Ruthie Bolton Foundation.

"I continue to do motivational speaking," Bolton says. "I love being with the youth and being able to share what I know and have experienced."

Bolton was part of a list of other small-town greats in this year's selection of sports inductees, including the late Steve McNair, Doug Cunningham, Robin Roberts, Calvin Smith, Richard Williams and Deuce McAllister—a star-studded cast of athletes and coaches, all of whom hail from Mississippi.

These athletes will be formally inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame during induction weekend, July 25-26, 2014.