2017 Lawson Award Recipients
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Darin Thomas '88Darin Thomas played baseball at Oklahoma Christian University from 1986-88. He was named to All District 9 in his junior year as a right-handed pitcher and to All Sooner Athletic Conference team both years. The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year, Thomas is in his 11th season at the helm of the UTA baseball program. A fixture in the UTA baseball program, Thomas spent seven years as an assistant coach with the Mavs before taking over the club as head coach in 2008. Thomas is coming off a historic season in 2017, where he lead UTA to a program-record 20 wins and the first Sun Belt Conference Western Division Title in school history. UTA set program records for wins over top-25 teams, road wins and road wins in conference and boasted five all-conference selections and an Academic All-American selection during 2017. Overall as UTA's head coach, Thomas has a 296-280 record, including a 174-133 mark in conference play since 2008.
Darin had been married to his wife Jean for 29 years. That have three children - Megan, Ryan and Reed and live in Mansfield. |
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Dr. Robert Bayless '75Dr. Bayless graduated summa cum laude with a degree in biology/chemistry from Oklahoma Christian College in 1979. He earned All-American status twice in the high jump and once in the 110 m high hurdles, and was the indoor high jump National Champion in 1978 and the Kansas Relays Decathlon Champion in 1979 He would later be inducted into the OC Athletic Hall of Fame. After graduating from OCC, he attended the University of Missouri - Columbia School of Medicine and completed his internship and residency at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and its affiliated hospitals. In 1992, he founded Irving Orthopedics and Sports Medicine which now has seven physicians and employes six physician assistants. The group is currently in the process of changing its name to Precision Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. Dr. Bayless continues to serve as the president and chairman of the board of this corporation.
Dr. Bayless and his wife Linda live in Southlake, Texas and enjoy spending time with their six children including their newest addition, three-year-old Brooklyn. They are also blessed to have three beautiful grandchildren. |
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Alan Phillips '74Alan Phillips and his wife Donna (Barnes '78) met as students at Oklahoma Christian, where Alan served as student body president. The San Antonio native began working at Oklahoma Christian in 1976 after graduating with a degree in business administration. He served for 17 years in the development and president’s offices, and was OC’s vice president for development from 1987 to 1993. He established Phillips Consulting, a fundraising consulting practice serving churches and church-related non-profit organizations. He also served as vice president for advancement and administration for the Missions Resource Network. OC’s 1998 College of Business Alumnus of the Year, Phillips was the founding chairman of OC’s North Texas Alumni Chapter in 2003 and the founding chairman of OC’s National Alumni Council in 2004.
Alan and Donna have three children, Kristi Plumlee (a 2009 OC graduate), Jason and Anna. The Phillips family lives in Keller, Texas, and attends Lake Cities Church of Christ in Trophy Club, where Alan serves as an elder. |