As a female and as a quiz bowler, I can say that while it might seem
to some extent demeaning, all lists of "best" players are arbitrary
anyway; it's nice to be recognized at all; and sheer numbers are
always going to tip the scale towards males when rankings of any sort
are done, so female names don't pop up all that much in general.
Keeping all that in mind, recognizing female players might actually
go a long way towards recruiting new female players by providing role
models. In addition, just having your name mentioned makes you want
to work harder at being the best player possible, regardless of
gender. I think it would do quiz bowl only good to have stronger
female players and more numerous female players. Our team has always
been proud of having a balanced gender ratio, and I believe the Ducks
team (one of whom started the thread) also makes an effort to
diversify their team when they recruit new members. To that end, I
enjoyed seeing the female players mentioned in this list, many of
whom have also made excellent moderators.