Hall of Fame
When the dust settled on her storied women’s basketball career, Kathleen Payne etched her name among the greatest student-athletes to ever don a Cardinal jersey.
She helped guide Plattsburgh State to its first SUNYAC championship during the 2013-14 season, a year in which she also was named the SUNYAC Player of the Year and an Honorable Mention All-American as named by the WBCA and D3hoops.com. The Goshen, N.Y., native was a three-time First-Team All-SUNYAC honoree, a two-time SUNYAC All-Tournament Team recipient and a D3hoops.com First-Team All-Region choice in 2013-14.
Kathleen, who also was named to the SUNYAC All-Decade Team and earned the 2013-14 Plattsburgh State Female Senior Achievement Award, is the program’s all-time leader in scoring (1,722) and rebounding (759) and owns the top two scoring seasons in program history (569 points in 2013-14 and 476 points in 2011-12).
Date of Induction into the Cardinal Sports Hall of Fame:
September 27, 2024
Where are they now:
Kathleen is currently the head women’s basketball coach at VTSU Castleton, an NCAA Division III institution. Her head coaching duties include, but are not limited to: oversight of all women’s basketball operations; practice planning; academic oversight of players; scrimmage and game scheduling; ordering and designing of gear; recruiting oversight; coordinating recruiting visits and overnights; coordinating community service; organizing and running summer camp; and team summer camp. Aside from her duties as head coach, she is also the scheduling coordinator/game contracts for 22 of VTSU Castleton’s varsity sports teams. She currently resides in Castleton, Vt., and has “two beautiful, perfect nieces that I adore; Margaret is 7 years old and Marion is 6 years old.”
She cites her greatest professional accomplishment as becoming a head coach and having the opportunity to do what she loves every day. Another accomplishment she is proud of that is both professional and personal is the fact that she completed her four-year enlistment as active duty in the Air Force. “During my four years, I had the opportunity to represent the All Air Force basketball team as well as getting the opportunity to travel to several states and complete a deployment to Adana, Turkey.”
Favorite Plattsburgh State Sports Moment:
“I have quite a few, but I would have to say winning the SUNYAC title my senior year as well as winning the first NCAA tournament game for the program. The other moments were all the great times and moments I experienced with my teammates over my four years. They are still some of the best stories to reminisce and smile over. If you can imagine how some of our 8+ hour bus rides to and from Buffalo/Fredonia went and the entertainment that occured, as well as all of our trips to SUNYAC opponents and to different tournaments in New Orleans, New York City, and Massachusetts. Lastly, I’d like to point out the growth and maturity I experienced over my four years and Coach Cole’s impactful role in that. I would not be the person I am to this day, without having her as my coach and mentor during my time at Plattsburgh.”
