Oklahoma School for the Deaf Lady Indians named National Champions
OKLAHOMA CITY –The Oklahoma School for the Deaf's Lady Indians found out late
last week they have been named the 2006 National Deaf Prep Girls Basketball
Champions.
The National Fraternal Society of the Deaf (NFSD) News, Deaf SportZine & Deaf
Digest sports publications are the organizations who select a girls and boys
National Championship team. They compare the winners of the six regional
tournaments across the United States along with win-loss record, strength of
schedule, and stats to determine this honor. The Lady Indians had 12 wins and 1
loss against deaf schools with an overall record of 16-4. They were GPSD
(Midwest Region-8 state tournament in Iowa) Champions, Ranger Classic (5 State
Tournament in Austin, TX) Runner-Up, and had 3 players named First Team Deaf
All-American by NFSD.
NFSD selects a 10 member Deaf All-American first team, and a 10-member second
team from the entire nation. Lady Indians senior Kelsey Jones, senior Saranne
Fewel, and freshman Kayla Gregory were named to the first team.
“We were a little surprised,” coach Terry Gregory said. “But we had an
outstanding group of kids and the credit goes to the girls.”
Coach Gayle Luna agreed, “The girls are bouncing off the walls. We are very
excited. It is positive recognition for our school and for the hard work our
girls put into this season.”
The criteria for selection as National Champions included comparing records of
the winners of the six regional deaf tournaments, strength of schedule, overall
win-loss record and different statistics.
OSD educates residential and commuter students through on-campus education and
pre-school satellite programs in Sulphur, Broken Arrow and Edmond. The school
also functions as a statewide resource center offering outreach services that
benefit students who are deaf or hearing impaired who attend public schools
across the state.
These outreach services include summer school classes, in-service training,
recommendations for adaptations to improve learning environments, evaluations
and expert consultations. All services are provided to students, parents and
public school staff free of charge.