Athlete – Basketball
Growing up on Short Street in Lexington’s West End, Tayna Fogle’s basketball journey began a few blocks away at the nearby Salvation Army with the late Charlie Givens as her first coach. Typically playing with the boys at the Salvation Army gym, Tayna tried out for her junior high school basketball team on a dare from her brother. She went on to star at Lafayette Sr. High, where she was an All-City and All-State performer. Tayna led her Lady Generals team to the 1978 KHSAA Girls Sweet 16 tournament and was runner-up for Miss Kentucky Basketball player of the year.
Recruited by University of Kentucky Head Coach Debbie Yow, Tayna earned a full educational/player scholarship to UK. She was the second African-American woman to play for UK and the first woman from Lexington to wear the Blue and White. Tayna served as captain of the historic 1982 team that won UK’s first and only women’s SEC Championship, knocking off chief rival Tennessee, which was coached by the legendary Pat Summit. This team, which ended the season ranked #5 in the country, was also the first UK women’s team to reach the Elite Eight of the Women’s NCAA Final Four Tournament. Tayna graduated from UK with a bachelor of arts degree and later coached AAU basketball in Lexington.
Tayna now applies her well-known hustle and grit on the court to her work as a Lead Organizer for Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. She has been instrumental in helping restore voting rights to former felons in Kentucky and works tirelessly for the underserved and most vulnerable in our community.
Tayna is a proud mother of two young men, grandmother of eleven and great-grandmother of four. Having overcome many obstacles, Tayna states, “My darkest past . . . has become my greatest asset. Thank You, Lord!”
