Bio

Two-sport athlete to be inducted into Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame Playing softball and basketball at Cowley College, Kim (Schuchman) Finuf was a part of some incredibly successful teams. The former All-American softball player will be recognized for her contributions to Cowley College by being inducted into the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame.

Growing up in Newkirk, OK, there was no high school softball team for Finuf to play on, so she had to play in summer leagues and youth softball programs. She played for the Ark City Cowbells, which was coached by Harold Talley and Carl Davis, and also for the Ponca City American Legion summer softball teams.

As a member of the Newkirk (OK) High School girl’s basketball team, Finuf earned All-Conference honors all three years at the school. She also was the regional champion in the high jump and qualified for the state track and field championships.

Her athletic prowess led to her signing to play both softball and basketball at Cowley. She was already familiar with the school prior to signing as her father, Ron, was an All-American football player for the Tigers during the 1961 season.

“My father had a good experience at Cowley and I didn’t want to go too far from home,” Finuf said.

As a freshman at Cowley, Finuf helped the basketball and softball teams win Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division titles. She also scored the winning run in the Region Championship game against Johnson County as the Cowley softball team rallied to win 5-4 in 15 innings. Ed Hargrove, who recruited Finuf to play softball at Cowley as part of his first recruiting class, fondly remembers Finuf scoring the winning run.

“Her heads up, aggressive base-running led to that winning run,” Hargrove said. “It was typical of the type of player she was. I still show the video of that game every once in a while to motivate our team.”

She was named an All-Region selection as a freshman as she batted .353 with a team-leading eight triples and 40 runs batted in. The shortstop followed up that success by earning team Most Valuable Player honors and All-American honors as a sophomore.

“She was the first outstanding player I recruited so she will always hold a soft spot in my heart,” Hargrove said. Finuf and her father became the first father-daughter All-American’s to play at Cowley. It is only fitting that the two will both be inducted into the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame in February.

“It’s a great honor to be inducted at the same time as my father,” Finuf said. “I never dreamed this would happen.”

The Lady Tiger basketball teams that Finuf were a part of accumulated a record of 48-13 during her two years at the school. The teams were coached by Hargrove’s wife, Linda, who like Ed, is also a member of the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame. Along with her father, Finuf credits her mother, Mary, with coaching her youth sports teams and helping her become the athlete that she was at Cowley. Finuf will join Lavonna Jacobs-Baden and Kristi “Buggy” Davis as members of the 1986 softball team that are now in the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame.

“I had a lot of fun being a part of those teams at Cowley,” Finuf said. She and her husband, David, have two daughters, Erin Wells and Kayla Finuf, who is a junior at the University of Oklahoma. Finuf is a senior clerk and time department clerk at Phillips 66 in Ponca City, where she has been employed for the past 25 years.

Hargrove credits players like Finuf, Jacobs-Baden and Davis in helping build the foundation to what the Lady Tiger softball program is today. “Kim was a no nonsense type of player and that is what I liked most about her,” Hargrove said. “She was an integral part in us getting the program going.”