Oklahoma City University will celebrate its rich athletic tradition and induct its 2011-12 Athletic Hall of Fame class with a ceremony 11:30 a.m. Jan. 21 in the Great Hall of the Tom and Brenda McDaniel University Center.
OCU's newest hall of famers will be former soccer standout Sally Cole, former softball pitcher Andrea Drake and assistant baseball coach Keith Lytle.
Tickets to the induction ceremony are $25 and can be ordered by contacting Melody Seeley at (405) 208-5309 or e-mail mdseeley@okcu.edu. Click here for information.
Cole became four-time first-team NAIA all-American and two-time NAIA scholar-athlete award winner for OCU from 1999-2002. She took third-team CoSIDA academic all-American honors as a junior.
As a senior, Cole posted 16 goals, four assists and 36 points as OCU went 17-4-2. Her statistics during her career were 29 goals, 17 assists and 75 points.
She played on teams that went 86-9-5 with three Sooner Athletic Conference championships, three NAIA Region VI titles and three trips to the NAIA Championships. OCU reached the NAIA Championships semifinals in 1999 and the quarterfinals in 2000. The 2001 Stars advanced to the national title match before falling 1-0 to Westmont (Calif.).
Cole, who hails from Yukon, Okla., currently coaches soccer at Bishop McGuinness High School in Oklahoma City. The current Sally Schmidt is married (Jodie).
“One of the finest players I've coached, male or female, is Sally Cole,” OCU coach Brian Harvey said. “She was a coach's dream. She gave 100 percent. She could create or deny goals.”
Drake still holds career records for strikeouts (874) and innings pitched (707) set during 1988-91. Drake became a four-time NAIA all-American, making first-team all-American as a junior, as well as four-time all-District Nine and two-time all-tournament in the NAIA Championships.
As a senior, Drake went 17-7 with a 1.15 earned run average, 24 complete games, five no-hitters, 149 strikeouts in 157.1 innings pitched. In 1988, Drake was 25-12 with a 1.10 ERA and 262 strikeouts in 261.1 innings. For her career, Drake went 87-34 with a 1.10 ERA, 96 complete games, two saves, 874 strikeouts in 810.2 innings.
During that time, OCU went 185-72 with two District Nine championships, two Bi-District VI titles and three appearances in the NAIA Championships.
Drake, originally from Stockton, Calif., was described as an “irreplaceable four-year difference maker.”
“She came out and was a dominant pitcher from the get-go,” OCU coach Phil McSpadden said. “She had a substantial career. She was definitely one of the best power pitchers around during the bulk of her career.”
Drake, now known as Andrea Maldonado, is married (Art) and has a daughter (Alexis).
Lytle has been recognized as one of the top hitting instructors in the nation during his 23-year tenure with OCU. With Lytle's aid, OCU posted the most wins in the nation since 1991 (1,070), 12 consecutive 50-win seasons, seven SAC titles and 10 trips to the NAIA World Series. The Stars were national runner-up three years in a row before breaking through to win the national championship in 2005.
His pupils have included six national players of the year – Mario Delgado, Nick Klusaw, Ted Ledbetter, Allen Thompson, Kirk Walker and Brent Weaver. Freddy Sanchez, the 2006 National League batting champion, blossomed under his tutelage and led the San Francisco Giants to the 2010 World Series championship.
Lytle joined OCU the same year Denney Crabaugh was named head coach. Crabaugh has consistently recognized Lytle as a key factor in the success of the Stars baseball program. Lytle will become the first OCU Athletic Hall of Famer who has spent his time at the university as an assistant coach his entire tenure.
“No one has contributed more to our success over the past 25 years than Keith,” Crabaugh said. “He was my first recruit as a head coach and is still my best recruit to this day. I'm very happy for him, and I know the whole OCU baseball family is celebrating this much deserved honor.”
OCU has set the team national record for homers four times and consistently been ranked among the national leaders in most hitting categories. In 2003, he was named the AFLAC national assistant coach of the year.
From 1988-1995, Lytle coached in the Shenandoah Valley League. He led the Harrisonburg Turks (Va.) to the league championship in 1991.
Lytle has experience coaching at the Triple-A level with the Texas Rangers organization. Lytle served the past three years as assistant hitting and first base coach with the Oklahoma City RedHawks. Lytle helped Nelson Cruz develop into a consistent hitting force. In 1990-91, Lytle worked as a bullpen coach for the Oklahoma City 89ers.
Prior to coming to OCU in 1989, Lytle served as an associate coach at New Mexico State. Before that, he was a pitcher and first basemen for the Aggies. He graduated from New Mexico State with a bachelor's degree in education in 1986.