1999 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE BERNICE AMARAL Bernie Amaral, the first female field manager of a world champion women’s softball team-guided the Fresno Rockets to three world titles and three second place finishes.The San Leandro High School graduate played third base for the 1938-39 World Champion Alameda girls’ softball teams. During World War II, she played on…
1998 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE WENDE WARD LOURENCO Wende Ward Lourenco was one of the greatest pitchers to play for Fresno State and helped put the Bulldogs on the map when they played on a dinky field with no fences and few bleachers. The Tulare Western High School athlete helped pitch Fresno State University into the 1982…
1998 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE DAVID LEWIS David Lewis was an All-Pac10 quarterback whose college career included leading Stanford University to victory in one of sports’ greatest traditions, the Big Game football rivalry between Stanford and the University of California, Berkeley. In the 1964 match-up, Lewis, a sophomore, completed five of eight passes for 92 yards as…
1998 COACHING-BASEBALL INDUCTEE JACK HANNAH Jack Hannah was a two-sport athlete at Fresno State and pitched six seasons in the minor leagues, then went on to coach Hoover High School to two Valley Championships in baseball. The son of a ranch foreman, Hannah was also a modern-day cowboy who later formed the Sons of the…
1998 SPORTS BROADCASTING INDUCTEE GEORGE BRYSON There was a little bit of Dizzy Dean in the makeup of the flamboyant actor, comedian, and radio-TV announcer, George Bryson, who was born in Missouri and grew up watching the St. Louis Cardinals. The “Ole Cottontop” as he was affectionately nicknamed, had the same folksy style of delivery…
1997 TENNIS INDUCTEE BUTCH WALTS Butch Walts, one of Fresno’s greatest tennis players, starred at Bullard High School and the University of Southern California. The Association of Tennis Professionals ranked him as high as #16 in singles in 1978. His decade-long career included victories over tennis greats such as John McEnros, Ilie Nastase and Guillermo…
1997 GOLF INDUCTEE LEN ROSS Len Ross’ vision was to teach young people to golf, no matter where they lived or how much money they had. With Ross’ gift for rallying others around his dream, the Fresno Junior Golf Learning Center opened its doors in the spring of 2006 in West Fresno. With the founding…
1997 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE STEPHONE PAIGE He wasn’t as physical as most pro receivers, but Stephone Paige had everything else: speed, agility,athleticism, toughness and great hands. Paige’s climb to gridiron greatness-ten seasons in the National Football League-began at Long Beach Poly High School and continued at Santa Ana’s Saddleback Junior College and Fresno State. He spent…
1997 VOLLEYBALL INDUCTEE RUTH LAWANSON Fresno State All-American volleyball player Ruth Lawanson was a member of the 1992 United States Olympic bronze medal-winning team in Barcelona. She was also an outstanding professional player and coach. Fresno State Coach Leilani Overstreet recruited Lawanson from Clovis West High School, where her skills were raw, but her talent…
1997 SPORTSWRITER INDUCTEE BRUCE FARRIS Bruce Farris was a sports writer for The Fresno Bee for fifty-two years, a career distinguished not only by longevity and depth, but by the respect he earned from those he covered and with whom he worked. Sports writers are often barely tolerated by coaches, avoided by athletes, and harangued…