Alabama baseball is headed to Omaha for the College World Series, its first appearance since 1999 and sixth in school history.
A host of Iolans will likely be yelling “Roll Tide” from the stands, too. After all, Alabama’s head coach, Rob Vaughn, is married to Iola native Kayleigh Vaughn, née Strickler, daughter of Steve Strickler and the late Cindy Strickler. Over a dozen family and friends will be there cheering on Vaughn (and Alabama), Janet Sager told the Register.
The couple met while at Kansas State University, where Vaughn played baseball for the university and Kayleigh was in the process of earning her dual degree in kinesiology and nutrition. They married in 2010 and now have two sons, Wyatt and Beau, and a daughter, Annie.
After graduating from K-State, Robert spent two seasons in the minor leagues with the White Sox. He was drafted in the 30th round of the 2009 MLB draft by the Chicago team.
He later returned to Manhattan to work as a student assistant for K-State. He began his collegiate coaching career at the University of Maryland in 2013, working his way up to being named head coach in 2018. Vaughn stayed in Maryland until 2023, when he became the head coach at Alabama.
While in Tuscaloosa, Vaughn has overseen a rebirth of Alabama’s baseball program, leading the team to its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The team boasts a 42-19 record, the first time Alabama has won at least 40 regular season games since 2002.
The Crimson Tide take on the Oklahoma Sooners this Saturday at 3 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN. If they win, they’ll face the winner of Texas vs. Georgia on Monday.
