The Howard Payne University department of athletics honored two alumni teams, two individual alumni, and inducted one former athlete and one team into the Sports Hall of Fame at the annual 2022 HPU Sports Alumni Awards banquet on May 14, 2022.
These former HPU athletes have been recognized for their excellence in coaching, achievements, and high-level performances. The honorees included Morgen Walker as Alumni Coach of the Year; Peggy Taylor Davis as Alumni of the Year; the 1990-91 Women’s Tennis Team and 1990-91 Men’s Tennis Team as Alumni Teams of the Year, as well as the two sports hall of fame inductees- Edward Randle and the 1997 men’s 4x100m relay team.
With a successful tennis career at Howard Payne University, Morgen Walker went on to become an even more successful tennis coach. His coaching career started in 1993 at Andrew Middle School, where he eventually led the program for five years as the head coach. Next, serving as the head tennis coach at Plano West Senior High School where he has been at for the past 20 years. Walker has earned countless awards, honors, and championship titles during his years of coaching. A few including ten district coach of the year awards, 22 consecutive district championships, 20 regional championships, 7-5A state semifinalists, 1-5A finalists, 3-5A state championship titles, 2-6A semifinalists, 3-6A finalists, and 2-6A state championship titles, and several more.
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Peggy Taylor Davis graduated from Howard Payne University in 1984, while earning titles such as first-team All-Lone Star Conference in 1983 and 1984, and the Conference MVP award in 1984 for the Lady Jacket basketball team. Following graduation, she served as the head coach for HPU’s women’s basketball team for two seasons (1988-1990) leading them to a Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championship in 1990 with a 9-1 league record. With a total of 15 years of coaching under her belt, including HPU (1988-1990), Angelo State University (1990-1997), and Virginia State University (1997-2003), Davis has dedicated the last 18 years to serving as the Associate Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics at Virginia State University. Under her guidance, VSU has earned several athletic and academic awards, honors, and championship titles. Alongside her impressive personal achievements and awards as the VSU athletic department Vice President, Davis has and continues to serve on numerous NCAA and CIAA Committees.
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The 1990-91 Howard Payne University women’s tennis team was led by head coach Lance Drake, as one of the most memorable tennis teams in school history. They won the 1991 Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association (TIAA) women’s tennis co-championship with an impressive 12-4 overall record and 9-1 record in TIAA play. A monumental achievement from the season was the Lady Jackets defeating Tarleton State University for the first time in school history, also marking the first loss ever for Tarleton State in TIAA play. In addition to the championship, the season ended on high note with two First-Team All-TIAA honors, and five Academic All-Conference honors.
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The 1990-91 Howard Payne University men’s tennis team finished with a 12-5 overall record and an undefeated 10-0 record in TIAA play. Head Coach, Lance Drake, was named 1991 NAIA District 8 Coach of the Year. He led the Yellow Jackets to victory in the 1991 TIAA championship, also beating Tarleton State University for the first time in HPU history. Their strength was in their depth of skilled players, with every player recording a winning record in both singles and doubles that year. The season finished with a First Team All-TIAA and TIAA MVP award, two Honorable Mention All-TIAA awards, and two Academic All-TIAA awards.
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Link to 1997 men’s 4x100m relay team –