Matt Rourke, Associated Press photos On the set of the film "Our Lady of Victory," from right to left are actors Carla Gugino as coach Cathy Rush, Marley Shelton as Sister Sunday, Taylor Steel and Meghan Sabia. Click photo for larger image.

WEST CHESTER, Pa. -- The nuns wore high-tops. The referees sported skirts. The fans dressed in tie-dye and the players shot baskets in blue tunics, with hair ribbons to match.

It was the 1970s all over again inside the field house at West Chester University, where filmmakers were re-creating one of the most inspirational -- but relatively unknown -- stories in sports history.

"Our Lady of Victory" recounts the journey of the Mighty Macs of tiny Immaculata College, which won the first national collegiate women's basketball championship in 1972. The all-girls Catholic school outside Philadelphia went on to win the title the next two years as well.

"When people hear that the story is being made into a movie, every single person says, 'It's about time,' " said Cathy Rush, the team's coach. "It should have been made long ago."

Starring Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn, Carla Gugino and David Boreanaz, the movie focuses on the coach (Miss Gugino), who was not much older than her players when she led them to all three titles.

Ms. Rush, now 60 and semiretired, describes the film as part "Sister Act," part "Hoosiers" and part "A League of Their Own."

You might as well add "Rocky," the fictional boxer who was perhaps Philadelphia's most famous underdog since, well, the Mighty Macs.

Immaculata didn't even have a home court. The school's field house had burned down, so the team practiced at area gyms and played all its games on the road. Players sold toothbrushes to raise money for their trip to the first championship, held at Illinois State -- but ended up short and had to leave three teammates behind.

	Cast members, including Katie Hayek, center, on the set. Click photo for larger image.

The Macs entered the 16-team tournament as the 15th seed after being routed by West Chester 70-38 in the regional final. After notching a solid win over South Dakota State, they squeaked by Indiana State by a single basket, and stunned top seed Mississippi State College for Women in the semifinals, 46-43.

Then they avenged their earlier loss to West Chester, beating the Golden Rams 52-48 for the first title bestowed by the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. (The NCAA took over the championship in 1982.)

It wasn't until three decades after the title, when author Julie Byrne published the book "O God of Players: The Story of the Immaculata Mighty Macs," that the movie concept gained momentum.

"It's a gem of a story," said Tim Chambers, the film's director. "Even in Hollywood terms, when people first read the script, people were like, 'How did you find this?' "

Mr. Chambers, also a writer and producer, had known about the Macs from growing up in the Philadelphia area. Officials at Immaculata fully support his vision, though it's important to note the film is "based" on a true story, said school spokeswoman Marie Moughan.

Take the nuns in Converse high-tops. While it's true the Mighty Macs were cheered on by Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary -- and passionately so -- they probably did it in more traditional footwear.

"Tim took some liberties there. I don't think they would have worn the high-top Chuck Taylors back then," Ms. Moughan said. "He is being playful and fun, and we're OK with that."

But the film, like the Mighty Macs, faces challenges. Though its backers include former Philadelphia 76ers president Pat Croce, the movie has a relatively small budget of $6.5 million and is still looking for a distributor. Filmmakers are hoping to have it ready to go next spring in time for Holy Week, which happens to overlap with the NCAA basketball tournament.

Immaculata, though, will not be a part of March Madness. The school fell off the basketball map with the passage of Title IX, which allowed colleges to offer women sports scholarships -- something the small school could not afford.

Immaculata's financial hardships continued as enrollment declined, and it ended up admitting men for the first time in 2005. Now a university with an enrollment of about 900 undergraduates, it has both men's and women's Division III basketball teams. The school hasn't won a basketball title since the glory days of the 1970s.

But its place in history is secure. The Macs marked many milestones in women's college basketball, including the first game at Madison Square Garden (versus Queens College) and the first nationally televised game (versus Maryland), both in 1975. And one of the Macs' star players, Theresa Shank Grentz, and Ms. Rush are in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

Other players from Immaculata's heyday include Rene Muth Portland, who became the coach of the Penn State women's squad, and Marianne Crawford Stanley, who won three championships as coach at Old Dominion and later coached the WNBA's Washington Mystics.

Many of the Macs have cameos in the movie, including Ms. Rush -- as the bank teller who cashes the coach's first weekly paycheck, for $19.50.