An alumna was the 13th OCU student and the first OCU basketball player inducted into the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.
The NAIA is a governing body of college athletic programs that hosts tournaments and provides scholarships for student athletes. Its Hall of Fame includes players from divisions of all sports, as well as faculty representatives and administrators.
Kesha Watson played for the OCU women’s basketball team from August 2000 until her graduation in 2004. She was NAIA Division 1 women’s basketball Player of the Year in 2003 and 2004. She is also a member of the OCU Athletic Hall of Fame.
“I want to thank my teammates, the community that supported us day in and day out and the coaches that helped me along the way,” Watson said.
While Watson was on the team, the OCU women’s basketball team played in four consecutive national championships. Watson said it was an amazing accomplishment.
“It was very exciting. You knew that, going in, your expectations were high because of the players before you that laid that foundation,” Watson said.
After college, Watson joined the Lubbock Hawks, a women’s basketball team that plays internationally. With this team, Watson traveled to Germany, Iceland and Slovakia. Watson traveled with her team for five years and said she learned a lot of lessons while abroad.
“It made you humble in a sense, not that you were cocky before then,” Watson said. “It makes you appreciate the little things, like your family and friends. Things that Americans take for granted.”
Watson graduated with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. She said it was a challenge to balance academics and athletics as a student athlete.
“It teaches you how to balance, how to organize. It helps me today, being a coach,” Watson said.
Watson assistant coaches at Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kansas, and has for the last five years. At first, she did not plan to coach basketball, but the inspiration of a former coach encouraged her to get back into the sport, she said. Watson’s former coach told her to “give back to what was given to you.”
Watson said coaching basketball has kept her inspired and invested in the game. She said her favorite part is getting to know the team.
“The best part is seeing the growth of the players and how the game has evolved,” Watson said.
Watson’s induction to the NAIA Hall of Fame was recognized nationwide.
“It does encourage us,” said Michaela Kay, senior point guard for the women’s basketball team. “For us to see a player that played in the same gym and for the same school now go down in history as a legend, it gives us hope that one day it could be us or one of our teammates.”
Kay said her current teammates and coaches give the program a family feel.
“This basketball program is truly a family,” Kay said. “We work hard and make sure that we put ourselves in a position to be successful.”
Watson said she thinks of OCU as a “home away from home.”
“I really, really love that small university feel. You’re a name, not a number. That’s why I chose OCU. Everybody is for everybody, whether you’re a student athlete or not.” Watson said.
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