McKINNEY, Texas—Seven individuals and one team will become the newest inductees into the McKinney ISD Athletics Hall of Honor. The Class of 2020 was announced Monday by the MISD Athletic Department.

The newest members in the Senior Era include McKinney High’s James Thornton, Johnny Holley, and Darla Sessom. The Modern Era selections are Colin Bado and Kathy Shelton of McKinney North and Empress Drane of McKinney High.

The 1986 McKinney Lion football team, which advanced to the 4A state championship game, will be the 2020 team inductee, and longtime MHS baseball coach Randall Hales is the Hall of Honor’s latest coach inductee.

The group will be honored at halftime of the McKinney North-McKinney High football game on Aug. 30 at MISD Stadium and will be formally inducted on Jan. 24, 2020, at the MISD Community Event Center.

Thornton was a standout running back for the Lions football team in 1990, rushing for 2,008 yards and 28 TDs in just 10 games. He was selected as the AP Class 4A Player of the Year, and his 3,844 career rushing yards ranks third all-time in school history.

Holley, who quarterbacked the McKinney Lions to the 1979 state 3A football championship, starred in three sports at MHS. All-state in football, Holley also earned all-district honors in basketball three times and was a state qualifier in track.

Sessom starred in volleyball, basketball, and track at McKinney High, qualifying for the state meet in the 100-meter hurdles and was a vital member of the Lionettes’ three district titles in basketball. After a track career at East Texas State University, she returned home in 1990, guiding MHS volleyball to the state tournament as head coach. She remains a fixture in MISD athletics as girls athletic coordinator at Scott Johnson Middle School.

Bado was a record-setting receiver at McKinney North and at Missouri Southern. He holds the MSSU record for career pass receptions and recorded the top two single-season reception records at Missouri Southern, where he was inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018.

Shelton was a three-sport star at MNHS, but excelled most in softball. The all-time steals leader in North softball history, she was all-state in 2007 and was twice named a Dallas Morning News all-area team member. At Baylor, Shelton earned All-Big 12 honors three times, was the conference defensive player of the year in 2013, and set the Lady Bears’ record for steals in a season and career.

Drane was an all-state basketball player and a state-qualifying sprinter in track at McKinney High School. Twice the district’s basketball offensive player of the year, Drane also was a member of the Lionettes’ bronze medal 4×400-meter relay team in 1996. She continued her basketball career at the University of North Texas, where she became the school’s career leader in rebounds and earned all-conference honors in 2000.

The 1986 McKinney football team went 14-2, losing to West Orange-Stark in the 4A state championship game. The Lions were dominant in the playoffs, outscoring their first five opponents, 227-67. All-state running back Randy Simmons ran for 2,557 yards and 44 TDs, thanks to an offensive line that featured two all-state players, Robbie Thomason and Speed Ames, as well as all-state quarterback Charlie Honea.

Hales amassed more than 400 wins as head coach of MHS baseball from March 1984 to 2004, never experiencing a losing season. The Lions won eight district championships and twice advanced to the region finals under Hales.