$1M Gift to Celebrate Basketball Standout’s Legacy

A prominent Baltimore County couple and parents of a late University of Maryland women’s basketball star have made a $1 million commitment to support the program, Maryland Athletics announced this week.  

Victor and Lynne Brick, owners of Brick Bodies health clubs, endowed a new scholarship named for their daughter, Vicki Brick-Zupancic '04, and the women's basketball team’s locker room at the new Barry P. Gossett Basketball Performance Center has been named in her honor. Brick-Zupancic, a member of the team from 2000-04, passed away in April from ovarian cancer.

"We're so proud of what Vicki did here and how she was thought of and how she will be remembered," said Victor. "We're so proud that she was a Maryland Terp. We're so invested in the university. Neither one of us went here, but we feel reconnected with the program."

Added Lynne, "Vicki loved everything about the University of Maryland student-athlete experience. From academics to athletics and beyond, her beloved Terps became part of her DNA. Vicki also shared her passion with her daughter, Jordan, who knows the Terps fight song by heart."

Brick-Zupancic was a four-time first team All-ACC Academic and the captain of the 2003-04 Terps. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in public health and went on to play professional basketball overseas. After her playing career, she joined the family’s business and in 2013 was named its CEO. 

In 2015, she was recognized as one of Maryland’s Top 40 Under 40 by The Baltimore Business Journal and the following year was named one of Maryland’s Top 50 Most Influential People by The Daily Record. 

Her family recalled her as a devoted mother to Jordan and wife to Evan Zupancic.

"Maryland Athletics and the University of Maryland are special because of the people, and the Bricks embody this to the fullest extent," said Jim Smith, Barry P. Gossett Director of Athletics. "We are fortunate to be able to celebrate Vicki's legacy in these meaningful ways and to help pass along her passion, perseverance and unwavering spirit to generations of Terps to come." 

"Vicki was a rock star, a winner and a warrior," said women’s basketball head coach Brenda Frese. "Every time we walk in and out of the Vicki Brick-Zupancic Locker Room we're representing her, and it's an honor we don't take lightly. When you play for us, you're family for life, and the Bricks are the perfect embodiment of this ethos."