Sad story breaking in Stillwater, Oklahoma: Women’s basketball coach Kurt Budke died Thursday when his small plane went down during a recruiting trip. Assistant coach Miranda Serna died in the crash, as well as two others who aren’t affiliated with the University. From the Tulsa World:

A university official confirmed that Oklahoma State women’s basketball coach Kurt Budke and an assistant, Miranda Serna, were killed in a small-plane crash that occurred on Thursday.

During a recruiting trip, their plane went down in central Arkansas, university spokesman Gary Shutt said. The pilot and one additional passenger – neither of whom was affiliated with OSU – also were killed, Shutt said.

A 50-year-old native of Salina, Kan., Budke had been the Cowgirl coach since 2005. Serna, a New Mexico native, had been a Budke assistant for seven seasons. They previously worked together on the Louisiana Tech.

The crash comes nearly 11 years after the 2001 plane crash that killed 10 people, including two Oklahoma State basketball players.