STILLWATER, Okla. — Oklahoma State University women’s head basketball coach Kurt Budke, a Salina native who coached at Allen County Community College for two years, and assistant coach Miranda Serna were killed in a single-engine plane crash Thursday.
The OSU coaches were on a recruiting trip when the plane crashed.
The university said Kurt Budke and Serna died in the crash Thursday afternoon in the Winona Wildlife Management Area near Perryville, about 45 miles west of Little Rock. The pilot, former Oklahoma state Sen. Olin Branstetter, and his wife Paula also died in the crash, university president Burns Hargis said at a news conference Friday morning.
There were no survivors.
Budke was the head women’s basketball coach at Allen County from 1991 to 1993. It was his first head coaching position and in a two-year stint the Red Devils generated a 47-15 mark.
Budke’s initial season produced a 22-8 record and a No. 17 national ranking during the 1991-92 season. Budke was named the Jayhawk East Conference’s coach of the year after he tallied a 25-7 record during the 1992-93 season.
“I was saddened by the news of Kurt’s accident. I have fond memories of him,” said John Masterson, ACCC president. “Kurt’s Allen (County Community College) family are all hurting at his loss and for Shelley and the kids.”
Budke was born June 3, 1961, and was married to the former Shelley Balthazor. They have three children: Sara, a student at OSU, Alex and Brett.
Budke was a high school basketball star, a member of The Topeka Capital-Journal’s All-State team at Salina’s Sacred Heart High School in his senior year. He played for Barton County Community College, earning all-conference honors in 1981, before transferring to Washburn, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 1984.
Masterson said he was the ACCC athletic director in 1991 when Budke was hired. He remembered that another applicant in the coaching pool that year was Jim Littell, who went on to a stellar career at Seward County Community College.
Littell coached 14 years at Seward County before joining Budke’s staff at Oklahoma State. Littell is the OSU associate head coach and in his seventh season with the Cowgirls.
“Kurt was patient with his players and spent his time teaching rather than berating,” Masterson said.
“We didn’t get to keep Kurt long. National powerhouse Trinity Valley Community College recognized his talent and snatched him away from Allen after just two seasons. We were sad for us and happy for him. I’ve followed his career since he left and have been proud of his accomplishments.”
Budke made the move to Trinity Valley before the 1993-94 season and compiled 226 wins against just 16 losses while leading the Lady Cardinals to four national championships and two national runner-up finishes in seven seasons. A 35-1 record and a national championship during his inaugural season began a string of six consecutive championship game appearances, a National Junior College Athletic Association record.
During his seven-year stint, TVCC was equally dominant against conference foes, posting a 96-2 record in Texas East Conference games and claiming seven straight conference titles.
At the junior college level, Budke had a combined record of 273-31 (.898), resulting in the highest winning percentage in NJCAA history. He was the NJCAA National Coach of the Year in both 1995 and 1998 and was the Texas Coaches Association Coach of the Year in 1994, 1996, 1997 and 1999. In addition, he is the youngest coach to ever be inducted into the National Junior College Athletic Association Hall of Fame.
Serna played on the Trinity Valley 1996 national championship team for Budke. She was a standout prep player at Eldorado (N.M) High School and played college basketball Central Arizona College before transferring to Trinity Valley then finished at the University of Houston.
Serna returned to Trinity Valley in 1997 to Budke’s coaching staff. She followed Budke to Louisiana Tech as an assistant then to OSU.
Budke was an assistant coach for two years at Louisiana Tech then took the head coaching position in 2002-03. The Lady Techsters compiled an 80-16 record with three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances under Budke’s leadership.
OSU hired Budke from Louisiana Tech seven years ago and the coach compiled a 112-83 record at the school. This year’s team was 1-0 after defeating Rice on Sunday.
Oklahoma State canceled its women’s college basketball home games set for today and Sunday. The school’s second-ranked college football team played Friday night at Iowa State.
University president Burns Hargis credited Budke with elevating the team in a tough program. Serna, he said, set a good example for the players.
“Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of Kurt Budke, Miranda Serna and the other victims. Kurt was an exemplary leader and a man of character who had a profound impact on his student-athletes,” Hargis said. “Miranda was an up-and-coming coach and an outstanding role model for our young ladies.”
On Jan. 27, 2001, one of three planes carrying players and others connected to the OSU men’s basketball team crashed in a field 40 miles east of Denver as the Cowboys returned from a game at Colorado. The crash occurred about 35 minutes after the plane took off in light snow.
An NTSB report cited a power loss aboard the plane and said the pilot suffered disorientation while flying the plane manually with still-available instruments.
Thursday night, the weather near the crash site was clear with temperatures in the upper 30s to mid-40s.
Former ACCC coach Kurt Budke dies in crash
