2009 GOLF INDUCTEE JOAN PITCOCK The late Al Pitcock said that when his nine-year-old daughter Joan hit her first golf ball with a club, it went 150 yards straight down the middle. He knew then she was going to be something special. Once Joan got hooked on the game, she benefited from the teaching of…
2009 SWIMMING INDUCTEE MICHAEL MEALIFFE When Mike Mealiffe and his twin brother, Pat, were growing up in Santa Clara, the twelve-year-old boys were active youngsters. One of the things that they loved was going to the municipal pool. Noticing the athletic abilities of the boys, swim coach George Haines suggested that the Mealiffe twins try…
2009 GOLF INDUCTEE GRANT HALSTEAD Public golf courses dot the landscape in Central Valley towns today, but the first never would have been created had it not been for the untiring work of one of California ‘s pioneering golf club professionals, Grant R. Halstead. The Visalia-born Halstead spent over forty-six years in the role of…
2009 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE TRENT DILFER When Trent Dilfer first came to Fresno State University in 1990, some people who saw him thought that the 6’4″, 237-pound athlete was recruited as a linebacker or tight end. Quite a few teams did scout him with the idea that the big kid from Aptos High School could fill…
2009 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE LAURA BERG Veteran Fresno State coach Margie Wright summed up her description of Bulldog outfielder Laura Berg in a few words: “The best woman outfielder ever.” Wright’s statement carries weight since she is the most successful coach in NCAA Womens’ Fast Pitch division. Internationally, she has seen the best from all over…
2009 BASKETBALL INDUCTEE RON ANDERSON Talk about a diamond in the rough; Ron Anderson was a find for sure. In the early 1980s while Frank Carbajal was head basketball coach at Santa Barbara City College, he was told by one of his players about a kid in Chicago who was a playground legend of sorts.…
2009 WRESTLING INDUCTEE STEPHEN ABAS Stephen Abas was the smallest athlete in Fresno State history to find success on both the collegiate and international stages. Wrestling at 125 pounds as a collegian and 121 to 125 pounds in freestyle Olympic and World competition, the three-time state champion and high school standout compiled eye-popping records at…
2009 BASKETBALL TEAM INDUCTEE 1983 FRESNO STATE NIT BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS March 31, 1983 was a special day for Fresno, her basketball fans, and the San Joaquin Valley. The Fresno State basketball Bulldogs were coming home to celebrate their incredible victory over the DePaul University Blue Demons for the National Invitational Tournament championship at Madison…
2008 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE AMANDA SCOTT Amanda Scott threw twenty-four no-hitters and sixty-two shutouts in eighty-one victories, striking out 1,051 batters. And that was just her record at Clovis High School. By the time the college scouts came calling for the young phenom, Scott had decided to stay close to home and signed with Fresno State…
2008 TRACK & FIELD INDUCTEE WILLIAM NEUFELD Born third in a family of nine children in the Ukraine at the turn of the 20th century, William Neufeld moved to the United States and blossomed into a world-class performer in the javelin and other throwing events. His father, a Mennonite minister, eventually settled the family in…