Baseball (1996-98)
Cary Ammons was a standout baseball player for Southeastern from 1996-to-1998, earning back-to-back All-American awards as well as being named the NAIA Player of the Year in 1997.
Over a three-year career he stamped his name throughout the pitching section of the Southeastern record book. At the time of his induction he owned outright the school record for career wins with 39, the record for career strikeouts with 333 and most career complete games with 29. He also shared the record for most shutouts in a career with 10.
As a sophomore, he reached heights that few can brag about at any point in their careers. He rewrote the single-season pitching records on his way to earning NAIA National Player of the Year honors and the first of two NAIA First Team All-American awards. He would also go on to win the first of back-to-back Southeastern Male Athlete of the Year honors.
That season he posted a 16-1 record with 134 strikeouts on the hill while adding a .347 average with six home runs at the plate. That season he set or matched five single-season pitching records, including wins, strikeouts, innings pitched, games started and complete games.
He hit the ground running for Southeastern, posting a 9-1 record as a freshman while piling up 72 strikeouts and a 2.61 ERA. At the plate he posted a .347 average which was third-best on that team.
After tasting defeat once in each of his first two seasons, Ammons would reach perfection as a junior with a 14-0 record and 134 strikeouts. He also added another stellar year at the plate with a .340 average that included nine doubles, three triples and three home runs. That year would also propel him to his second-straight NAIA First Team All-American honor as well as his second Southeastern Male Athlete of the Year Honor.
He left Southeastern before his senior season after being drafted by the Kansas City Royals. He would eventually graduate and go into education and at the time of his induction was superintendent for the Antlers School System.
Ammons, throughout his years as an athlete and an educator, excelled to a level that brings great honor to Southeastern Oklahoma State University. The University honored him with membership in the Southeastern Oklahoma State Athletics Hall of Fame on August 25, 2012.
