David Kragel

David Kragel, 1974 NJCAA All-American and national scoring leader for the Spartan men's basketball team, was inducted into Southwestern's Athletic Hall of Fame during a ceremony on Wednesday, September 7, 2016, at 6:30 p.m., prior to the volleyball match vs Iowa Lakes, in the college's Student Center gymnasium.

When David Kragel graduated from Corning High School in 1972, this four-sport high school athlete headed to Southwestern Community College to play baseball and basketball for the Spartans. Kragel's prior high school successes, including all-state honors in basketball and football, only led to even bigger accomplishments throughout his college career. It was on the basketball court at Southwestern that Kragel went down in history, college-wide and nationwide.

While a student-athlete at Southwestern, Kragel earned First Team All-American honors in basketball his sophomore year and he was selected for Who's Who Among Junior College Students. In 1974, at the end of his sophomore season, he led the nation in scoring with 773 total points for the year. His nearest teammate in scoring for the Spartan team finished with 287 points. He ended his 1973-74 season with 323 of 571 field goals made for a field goal percentage of 56.57 percent. He had a total of 570 rebounds that year as well. He ended his career at Southwestern with 468 field goals made and a field goal percentage of 57.7 percent. He contributed 1,134 total points to the Spartans during those two seasons.

Kragel played basketball at Southwestern under legendary head coach Ron "Fox" Clinton. According to Kragel, playing for Fox was one of the greatest highlights of his playing career. He and Fox still keep in touch and when Kragel is in town, the two get together to catch up.

After leading the nation in scoring at the junior college level, Kragel earned a scholarship to study and play at Oklahoma State University. He earned MVP honors for the Cowboys his senior year. Kragel earned his bachelor's degree and continued on at Oklahoma State, receiving his Masters of Business Education degree while working as a graduate assistant coach.

It was 1977 when Kragel was announced as head women's basketball coach and business professor for Walters State Community College in Morristown, TN. He assisted briefly with the men's basketball program as well. In 1985, Kragel wrapped up his teaching career and was named coordinator of activities for the student services department.

Kragel has accomplished much as the head coach for the Senators. This past season Kragel surpassed 900 wins as a coach, making him third in total wins among active coaches in the NJCAA and fifth overall for all-time winningest coaches in the NJCAA. This past season, his team earned their fifth straight appearance in the NJCAA national tournament, ending the season in second-round tourney action against #1 ranked Gulf Coast State, who went on to win the national championship.

His teams currently have a 105-game winning streak in the conference, not losing a game since 2011. During his coaching career, his teams have earned 16 Tennessee Community College Athletic Association (TCCAA) championships, and 13 national tournament appearances. Kragel has been named TCCAA Coach of the Year 18 times and NJCAA Region 7 coach of the year 13 times. In 2004, Coach Kragel was inducted into the TCCAA Hall of Fame. Kragel has been the Women's Basketball Coaches Committee Chairman since 1995.

In 2014, Kragel was named to the NJCAA Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. At that time, he had a career record of 806 wins and 258 losses. He currently sits with a career record of 904 wins and 260 losses.

Under Coach Kragel's reign, 152 players have received scholarships at four-year institutions, 50+ athletes have been named to all-region teams, and 28 players have received All-American honors.

Kragel has always believed in the mission of the community college and this is the reason he has remained at Walters State for almost 40 years. Kragel said there is a huge benefit to students staying in a small environment to continue their education. One of his proudest achievements is having approximately 90 percent of his players earn degrees from Walters State and/or transfer to four-year institutions to continue their education.

Kragel and his wife, Sharlene, who he met while attending Southwestern, have two sons, Alex, wife Amanda, and Ryan, wife Audra. The Kragels have five grandchildren, Abby, Anna, Ava, Carson, and Conner. Kragel's brothers, Don and Dennis, also attended Southwestern.