Pigg tops athletes of Century

 

Pigg tops athletes of century

The Times-Standard (January 1, 2000)

There was only one North Coast athlete who dominated internationally, became a commercial spokesman for athletic gear and spent 15 years on top of his world.

Mike Pigg, the international triathlon superstar who has twice earned the world Triathlete of the Year honors, is The Times-Standard North Coast Athlete of the Century.

After Pigg, filling out the top 10 athletes of all-time was no easy task. But, each of the nine athletes who follow Pigg were clearly a cut above the rest in the past 100 years.

Rob Harrison was a three-sport, all-state athlete at Eureka High in the 1980s. Then, he had a National Football League career ended by injury while playing with the Oakland Raiders.

Elta Cartwright remains the only North Coast athlete ever to compete in the Olympics, winning the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 meters in 1928.

Fortuna's Karen Logan was a pioneer in women's basketball in the 1960s and 1970s, eventually starring in the made-for-television Superstars competition for women.

Don Durdan, of Eureka, played on the Loggers' glorious "Wonder Team" in 1935. Then, he went on to play in the Rose Bowl for Oregon State while also playing basketball for the Beavers.

Any arguments so far?

Dane Iorg went from Arcata High, where he was a multi-sport star, to playing big league baseball and starring in the World Series for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals.

Arcata's Chris Johnson started playing golf locally when women had a hard time getting a fair deal in sports in the 1970s. She has become one of the top money-winners on the Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour for years.

The sports family of the century honor is clear as Garth Iorg, Dane's brother, earns honors for his long big league baseball career with the Toronto Blue Jays. Like Dane, he starred in three sports at Arcata High in the mid-1970s.

Trina Bindel, a Eureka High grad, might well crack this All-Century list and the list for the century to come. She is one of the top heptathletes in the United States and, even while recovering from a knee injury, has her sight set on the Olympics in 2004.

For Air Force Academy quarterback Rich Mayo, who is in the NCAA Academic Athletic Hall of Fame, was one of the greatest athletes to play at Eureka High. He starred in three sports for the Loggers in the 1950s.

Here's a closer look at Pigg, the finest of the century, and the nine who shined so bright.

1. Mike Pigg, triathlete: Pigg was a cross country runner and basketball player at Arcata High School, also competing in track and field. While running distances at College of the Redwoods at age 20, he decided to try the then unknown sport of triathlon.

Good idea.

The triathlon involves a distance swim, a long bicycle race and then a marathon -- or half-marathon -- that remains a grueling test of athletic ability.

Pigg won 83 of 130 races from 1987 to 1996 and remains a top competitor, respected throughout the world. He was named Triathlete of the Year in 1988 and 1991 and finished second in the prestigious Hawaii Ironman in 1988.

Pigg has had commercial endorsement deals with Saucony shoes, Trek bicycles and Oakley sunglasses. He remains very active in the North Coast community.

2. Rob Harrison, multi-sport: Harrison is the best running back to play football on the North Coast. He remains one of the all-time single-season rushing leaders after a 1980 senior season when he rushed for 1,784 yards and 24 touchdowns.

In that same season, Harrison was an all-state track and field hurdler who also starred in the jump events. In between track and football, he was in the California Interscholastic Federation wrestling meet.

After high school, Harrison got an NCAA Division I scholarship to San Diego State. He wound up back at College of the Redwoods, where he starred for one year. He finished his career as a Sacramento State University superstar.

Harrison played for the Oakland Raiders in the NFL, only to have an injury end his career -- but, earn him a place on The Times-Standard All-Century Football Team.

3. Elta Cartwright, track: The only local athlete to compete in the Olympics, Cartwright has become a household name on the Northcoast. After winning the 100 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1928, she traveled by boat to Amsterdam. She performed poorly at the because of the effects of seasickness on her trip to the Olympics. The first Humboldt State University athlete to gain All-American status, Cartwright also shined at Eureka High in the early 1920s. Unfortunately, girls would not compete at the California State Track and Field Championships for another 50 years.

4. Karen Logan, basketball: She was a women's basketball star at Fortuna High in the 1960s, then played for the "Traveling Redheads," a national team of touring women's superstars of the era.

Logan paved the way for the likes of McKinleyville's Trina McCartney, South Fork's Heidi Bowman and Fortuna's Judy Griffith.

It took the 1970s TV hit "Superstars" to get Logan her national acclaim when she took on prominent women athletes from all sports and finished second in the event that featured a variety of athletic competitions from running to bicycling to bowling and swimming.

5. Don Durdan, multi-sport: Durdan was a brilliant running back for coach Jay Willard's "Wonder Team" that didn't lose a game or give up a point in 1935. He was also a fine basketball player for Willard with the Loggers.

After high school, he went on to fame at Oregon State. He was a star running back for the Beavers and started as a guard in basketball.

6. Dane Iorg, multi-sport: Iorg played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals, starring in postseason play -- including shining in the World Series. He was a slugging lefthanded hitter with power.

Iorg started as a multi-sport star, the best baseball player ever produced locally, at Arcata High. He went on to shine at Brigham Young University as a baseball player.

7. Chris Johnson, golf: Johnson has been near the top of the LPGA money-winners for years.

She remains Arcata's finest, while residing in Arizona for years. She still sponsors "Chris Johnson Day" on the North Coast to benefit area junior golfers.

Johnson's list of accomplishments as a professional golfer are made all the more amazing given that she was playing against boys as a young girl in Arcata and beat long odds to enjoy a reign atop the LPGA that continues today.

8. Garth Iorg, multi-sport: Iorg was a football great and basketball star at Arcata High. He even played basketball at College of the Redwoods while playing minor league baseball.

He was drafted out of Arcata High, where he was a shortstop for three of the finest Humboldt-Del Norte League teams in area history. As many as seven players off of Iorg's high school teams were either drafted professionally or played in college.

After starting his baseball career with the New York Yankees, he moved to the Toronto Blue Jays where he starred at third base through most of the 1980s. He met brother Dane in the American League Championship Series when the older Iorg played for the Kansas City Royals.

Garth is currently a minor league baseball manager.

9. Trina Bindel, track: A high school standout, she went on to an even better college career. The 1995 Atlantic Coast Conference heptathlon champion and Wake Forest school record holder, Bindel finished fifth at the USATF Outdoor Championships in her specialty. In 1997, she was a medalist at the World University Games. While at Eureka High, she excelled at nearly every event. Bindel set H-DNL bests in the 800m (2:13.36), 100-meter hurdles (14.9), 300-meter hurdles (45.4) and the high jump (5-8). She qualified for the state meet in three events (800m, 100m hurdles and high jump), and medalled in two of them (800m and high jump).

She injured her knee training with international stars in Texas and is currently working and training in hopes of earning a spot in the 2004 Olympics when the heptathlon will give way to the women's decathlon where Bindel will have a big edge given her strengths in jumping events -- like the pole vault -- that aren't included in the heptathlon.

10. Rich Mayo, mult-sport: Mayo was an All-Century Football pick, chosen unanimously by voters. He led Air Force to the Cotton Bowl championship in 1961.

The Eureka High legend lettered multiple times in baseball, basketball and football for the Loggers.

His greatest achievement, however, is his induction to the NCAA Academic Hall of Fame that honors great athletes who were also outstanding students. He was inducted in a group with former UCLA basketball legend Bill Walton.


©1999 Times-Standard
Fri, Jan 1, 2000

 

Katri, Mogni were dominators

The Times-Standard (December 30, 1999)

A variety of athletes from a number of different sports, like stock car legend Jimmy Walker, are honored among the top 50 in The Times-Standard North Coast Athletes of the Century.

As the countdown to the Athlete of the Century continues, Walker and women's basketball stars Trina McCartney and Heidi Bowman join former NCAA Division I men's basketball stars like Gary Mendenhall and Dick Soares.

Here's a summary of those from 11th to No. 50:

11. Mike Katri, track/cross country: This Fortuna star is the only H-DNL athlete to win two state titles. Katri claimed the Division IV cross country title his senior year before registering an upset victory in the state track meet in the spring. His time of 1:49.56 for 800 meters was the fastest in the nation in 1992 and still ranks as one of the best marks ever run in the state.

12. Dave Mogni, multi-sport: He's an All-Century Football Team member as a wide receiver out Ferndale High, College of the Redwoods and Cal. He was a basketball and track-and-field star, too, who might be the most versatile major-sport star.

13. Jimmy Walker, auto racing: Walker is best known as a legend on the stock car racing circuit over the last 30 years on the North Coast, winning the Permatex 200 in Riverside in 1976. "The Coffee Creek Comet" was an All-Century Football linebacker who starred at Humboldt for a bowl championship team in 1960.

14. Joe Oescheger, baseball: He pitched the longest game in major league baseball history in the early 1900s and became a North Coast hero in Ferndale.

15. Rob Nairne, football: Nairne had a long professional football career in the NFL after starring at Ferndale High and Oregon State. He was a multi-sport star in the Humboldt-Del Norte League in the 1970s for Ferndale.

16. Mike Bettiga, multi-sport: After starting his football career late, he joined Nairne on the All-Century football team as a record-setting wide receiver at CR and Humboldt State before playing in the NFL. Bettiga also won a NCAA hurdling title while at HSU.

17. Lou Bonomini, baseball: The founder of the Humboldt Crabs is the best-known baseball personality of the century. He was a multi-position star in the 1930s who ranks as one of the greatest sportsmen in area history.

18. Ellis Williamson, tennis: The finest tennis player ever produced on the North Coast. He is still winning age-group national championships during a career that covered most of the 20th century.

19. Vicky Fleschner, track, cross country: A nationaly-ranked 800m runner while at University of Oregon, Fleshner placed third at the PAC-10 Championships in 1996 and 1997. While at Fortuna High she placed sixth at the California State Championships and set the H-DNL's best marks in the 800m (2:12.97), mile (5:11.6) and cross country.

20. Heidi Bowman, basketball: It's a long trip from South Fork High's "Fab Five," that dominated area hoops in the 1990s to NCAA Division I Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis. Bowman, however, is thriving in the big time after a four-year career as the best ever all-around women's basketball player here.

21. Trina McCartney, basketball: She led McKinleyville High to North Coast Section honors and into the Northern California Tournament. She remains one of the leading scorers and rebounders in area history. McCartney, a post player, starred for four seasons at Oregon State in the 1980s.

22. Myra Albrecht, track and field: The fastest woman in the history on the North Coast. This Del Norte High star's holds the H-DNL's best performances in both the long jump (19' 8") and 100 yard (11.0), marks which have stood for 28 years. She also set 200-meter H-DNL best which stood for nine years.

23. Mark Lucich, multi-sport: He played basketball, football and baseball at Eureka High. A brilliant wide receiver, he turned to baseball at Stanford University from where he jumped to a professional career.

24. Gary Wilson, baseball: He pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1990s but was a three-sport sensation at Arcata High as a basketball guard and a football quarterback. While baseball was his forum, he could have gone on in three sports in college.

25. Randy Niemann, baseball: This big Fortuna High and College of the Redwoods lefthander had a long major league career pitching for a host of teams, including the Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros and Pittsburgh Pirates.

26. Greg Shanahan, baseball: This St. Bernard High star of the 1960s was also a Humboldt State and Humboldt Crabs pitcher who eventually spent a long career in the pro ranks where he pitched in the big leagues for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

27. Billy Olsen, baseball: A flame-thrower who made the jump from Eureka High directly to being the ace of the Humboldt Crabs staff in 1967. He was a high-round draft pick by the New York Yankees who suffered an arm injury that cut short the career of the finest baseball pitcher produced here.

28. Ed Oliviera, multi-sport: This third baseman was an All-Century baseball team selection who starred in football, basketball and baseball at Arcata High and Humboldt State before a long career as an educator locally.

29. Jim Godsey, football: While he is remembered as an All-Century Team running back, Godsey was also a track-and-field star who ran like a sprinter and dominated field events at McKinleyville High in the early 1970s.

30. Gary Thompson, football: A Eureka High grad, Thompson starred for two seasons at CR before heading to San Jose State. He played more NFL games in the 1980s as a defensive back for the Buffalo Bills than any modern era player played in the NFL.

31. John Schlesiger, baseball: This infielder was a brilliant performer at Eureka High and CR, earning All-Century Team honors after playing pro ball in the New York Yankees organization in the early 1970s. He was also a quarterback star for one of the first CR championship teams in 1968 after playing at EHS.

32. Paul Ziegler, baseball: He played baseball at Fortuna High and USC -- where he started in center field -- but, he was also a star quarterback and standout basketball guard in a sterling prep career.

33. Greg Lorenzetti, baseball: Lorenzetti was a baseball outfielder who starred at Stanford and in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He also quarterbacked a North Coast Section power at Fortuna, while starring in basketball. Like Ziegler, he is an All-Century Baseball player.

34. Gary Mendenhall, basketball: After leading St. Bernard to glory in the mid-'70s, he became one of the very few H-DNL basketball stars to play NCAA Division I basketball -- going from Santa Rosa Junior College to the University of Santa Clara.

35. Matt Creason, track/cross country: This former Eureka High distance runner placed second in the Big East Conference 10,000m in 1996 while running for Georgetown University. Creason still holds the H-DNL's best time for the 3,200m.

36. Megan McMillan, multi-sport: She led Del Norte High to basketball glory in 1998, starred in volleyball and still holds the 300-meter hurdles league record with Ferndale grad Julie Peterson. McMillan moved on to play volleyball at Cal State Bakersfield.

37. Bart Goodell, football: One of the finest tight ends ever to play in the modern era, the Fortuna and CR star is an All-Century Team member. He was a track and field sensation who was a decathlete in the 1980s.

38. Len Casanova, football: He was actually a multisport star in the 1920s at Ferndale High School. His greatest accomplishments came in football, a sport in which he became a legendary NCAA Division I coach at a number of top universities.

39. Judy Griffith, basketball: A women's basketball pioneer, Griffith led Fortuna High's teams coached by Yvonne Rocha in the 1980s to unmatched Northern California dominance. She also shined at Stanford University.

40. Teresa Cheek, softball: This pitcher was a sensation for Arcata High teams coached by her dad, Frank, then went on to be one of the first players from the H-DNL to shine in college.

41. Bob Allord, basketball: This H-DNL great went on to star for Oregon State's Pacific Coast Conference champions under coach Slats Gill in the 1950s. The 6-foot-5 star shined at Arcata High.

42. Don DeSomery, football/basketball: An All-Century Football receiver, he starred at South Fork and went on to play at Stanford and Santa Rosa JC after earning all-Northern California honors twice. He was also a basketball star in college.

43. Dick Soares, basketball: Jay Willard, Eureka High's legendary coach, considered Soares one of his most prominent basketball stars. He played at the University of Santa Clara when the Broncos advanced to the Final Four in 1951-52.

44. Keeta Zimmerman, track: A member of HSU's All-American 400-meter relay team in 1995, Zimmerman was the NCAC Track & Field Athlete of the Year in 1998. She also holds the H-DNL's best triple jump mark (37' 6.75") and the league's second and third best times in the 100m and 200m respectively and was a member of numerous record-setting EHS relay teams.

45. Ron Perry, wrestling/football: This Arcata High star football player was a wrestling great who dominated for three years on the mats in the 1980s. He moved on to Stanford University where he wrestled, before coming back home to help restore Eureka High's wrestling program to greatness as the head coach.

46. David Wells, track/cross country: Wells is the head HSU cross country and track and field coach. He was a brilliant distance runner at Eureka High from 1971-74, then moved on to CR and, eventually, Stanford University.

47. Reco Pastori, multi-sport: This Eureka sports legend was an All-Century Baseball star as a brilliant prep and Humboldt Crabs great. He was a nominee as a receiver for the All-Century Football Team based on his exploits in the 1930s and 1940s.

48. Wally Scott, multi-sport: While Pastori was starring in Eureka, Scott was doing the same things in the same sports at Arcata High. Scott was an All-Century baseball player and considered for the All-Century football squad.

49. Garth Conner, wrestling: His dominance at Arcata High was unmatched as a North Coast Section kingpin in the 1980s. Like Perry, he was a brilliant student who went on to attend the U.S. Army Academy at West Point.

50. John Burman, football, track: He's most remembered for spending years as the all-time leading rusher for Humboldt State's football team and starring on the Lumberjacks' Camellia Bowl champs in 1968, but he was a sprint recordholder in track at Eureka. He was honored on The Times-Standard All-Century Team and is in HSU's Hall of Fame.

(Ted Sillanpaa, Que Schafer, Adam Hall and Marcos Mocine-McQueen contributed to this story. On Friday, a look at the top 10 North Coast Athletes of the Century -- including the individual who ranks No. 1.)


©1999 Times-Standard
Thur, Dec 30, 1999

 

 

Golfer, runners shined in century

The Times-Standard (December 29, 1999)

Professional boxing great Junior Albers, women's amateur golf legend Donna Stephens and McKinleyville soccer standout Sean O'Gara are among the top stars honored in the first edition of The Times-Standard's North Coast Athletes of the Century.

This is a look at the athletes who occupy No. 51 through No. 100 in the survey of the last 100 years of athletic competition.

Will there be room to argue the selections?

Yes.

Could No. 95 have been bumped even up to No. 49?

Sure.

Can anyone say a baseball/football great like Arcata's Ramey Dickenson or others doesn't belong?

No way.

After polling former staff members of The Times-Standard and area historians and coaches, here's a look at No. 51 through No. 100:

51. Cindy Bradley, multi-sport: A volleyball, basketball and track star at Eureka High in the early 1980s. Went on to star at the University of Minnesota.

52. (Tie) Ken Dunaway and Ernie Cunningham, multi-sport: These North Coast legends have left their marks as coaches and sportsmen following brilliant prep careers in the 1930s through the 1950s at Eureka High and Humboldt State. Both are HSU Hall of Fame members.

54. Don Boyd, multi-sport: Boyd holds the H-DNL shot put record and was an All-Century Football lineman who played at Oregon and Humboldt State.

55. Rick Lundblade, baseball: This Eureka High baseball star briefly held Stanford's career home run record, leading the Cardinal to the College World Series in the 1980s. Locally, he was a star catcher but moved to first base in college before a professional career. He was a standout basketball player at EHS.

56. Jennifer Anderson, volleyball: She had a brilliant career at Del Norte High School late in the century, then went on to compete in college and rank among the greatest in her sport.

57. Junior Albers, boxing: His tragic death in an automobile accident this year shined an even brighter light on this amateur boxing star who headlined the last professional boxing card in Eureka in the 1970s.

58. Dan Mullins, track/cross country: Two-time All-American at HSU, running the third-fastest steeplechase in school history in 1972. Ran first sub-4:20 mile in H-DNL history at Ferndale.

59. Keith Weidkamp, track: Sprint star at Eureka High and HSU. Still owns prep record for 200 meters. His Humboldt State 200 and 400 records stood for more than two decades.

60. Joe Giovanetti, track: Held both Eureka High and Humboldt State 800 records for nearly 20 years after starring in the late 60s and early 70s. 1999 inductee into the HSU Hall of Fame.

61. Bob Talmadge, track and field: A Hoopa High star, Talmadge went on to stand out in track as a sprinter at San Jose State.

62. Bob Bonomini, baseball: Bonomini was a baseball legend, making the Times-Standard All-Century Team. He was voted to the Fresno State Hall of Fame. He was a multi-sport star at St. Bernard High School.

63. Joe Rogers, multi-sport: The ex-St. Bernard High star was a great in basketball, baseball and football. He went on to star in all three sports at College of the Redwoods in the 1970s.

64. Alicia Herman, softball: She had a fantastic four-year career for Fortuna High and led the Southern Humboldt Starz to the national summer Senior Babe Ruth title this year.

65. John Murray, basketball: This 6-foot-10 Eureka High graduate still ranks among the all-time leading scorers in H-DNL history after starring in the early 1960s. He went on to play at Stanford University.

66. Kelsey Burman, multi-sport: While she's a senior star in soccer, being recruited by Division I schools right now at St. Bernard Catholic, Burman is also a sprint star in track. She first burst onto the scene when she was an international youth triathlon star.

67. Shawn Kinser, swimming: A Fortuna High grad, Kinser became a youth swim coach after earning All-America honors and starring in her prime.

68. Bill Sullivan, football: The former Del Norte High quarterback went on to start at fullback for Oregon State in the 1960s. He earned a spot on the All-Century Football Team.

69. Sean O'Gara, soccer: While soccer has boomed in the 1990s, O'Gara was a pioneer star in the 1980s at McKinleyville High. He later played in Europe.

70. Jeff Nielsen, College of the Redwoods: The Ferndale High star is still the all-time leading rebounder at CR with an average of 13.9 boards per game. He was a tri-captain for CR's championship team in 1972-73.

71. Barry Anderson, track/cross country: Arcata grad won NCAA Division III title in the steeplechase for HSU in 1975, runner-up in 1976. Fourth-fastest prep miler in area history.

72. Dennis Pfeifer, track/cross country: He won two H-DNL cross country titles at Eureka High in the 1980s, then went on to earn All-America honors at Humboldt State, placing 15th in cross country and second in the 10,000m in the spring.

73. Dutch Yerton, track: Placed fourth at NCAA meet in 1997, running second-fastest 800m in HSU history. Set Eureka High school record while battling Fortuna's Mike Katri in 1990.

74. Pam Reed, track/cross country: She went from dominating distance events at Eureka High in the 1980s to earning All-America honors at Redlands University in cross country.

75. Donna Stephens, golf: She has been winning, and dominating, area women's amateur golf for years. Her overwhelming success in the Humboldt County Women's Golf Tournament is testament to her greatness.

76. Ramey Dickenson, multi-sport: He still holds the single-season rushing record in H-DNL football and earned an All-Century spot for his performance in the 1980s at Arcata High. He went to the University of Pacific where he played football briefly before concentrating on what turned out to be a brilliant baseball career as an outfielder.

77. Jane Romberg, basketball: She was one of the first H-DNL women's basketball stars to go on to an NCAA Division I college -- Pacific. The McKinleyville forward had her career cut short by injury.

78. Justin Mora, multi-sport: Mora was a basketball, soccer and rodeo star at Fortuna High in the late 1990s. He went on to star in basketball in college. He, too, ranks among the best natural athletes -- and hardest workers -- in all three sports.

79. Leon Volasgis, basketball/football: This Hoopa High great helped lead the Warriors to the North Coast Section Division V title with a stunning upset of previously unbeaten Emery to highlight an all-state prep career. He was also a bullish tight-end/linebacker who ranks among the best pure athletes ever on the North Coast.

80. Glenn Wallace, basketball: He starred at Eureka High in the 1950s, then went on to become one of the finer players in Humboldt State history.

81. Mary Bushnell, basketball: This former South Fork High great was a record-setter at CR in 1979-80. She was a multi-sport star in high school and at Redwoods.

82. Rich Spinas, multi-sport: An All-Century Football Team wide receiver who starred in basketball at Eureka High and College of the Redwoods, while also earning honors in the jumps while competing in track and field in the 1970s.

83. Larry Houseman, boxer: He starred in the glory days of amateur boxing on the North Coast. A Southern Humboldt native, Houseman was a crowd favorite who also played baseball locally.

84. Burt Nordstrom, baseball/football: This Humboldt State and Arcata High Hall of Fame star played professional baseball after starring in football and basketball on the North Coast.

85. Carl Peterson, multi-sport: This Ferndale football, basketball and track star set stil-standing sprint and jump school records in the mid-1930s that still stand today.

86. Kevin Krause, multi-sport: Krause was a record-setter at St. Bernard in football and basketball, then set more records on the basketball court at CR before moving on to star at UC Riverside.

87. Jug Davis, multi-sport: A Hoopa legend, Davis starred in three sports -- basketball, baseball and football -- in the 1950s.

88. Fred Whitmire, football: An All-Century Football quarterback who was a multi-sport star at Eureka High in the 1950s. He was a Little All-America QB at Humboldt.

89. John Sylvia, wrestling: Sylvia shined on the mats at Eureka High and CR, dominating competitors from the time he was a youngster.

90. Eric Woolsey, multi-sport: An Arcata High grad, Woolsey was an All-America wrestler at Humboldt. He was also a two-way football star (linebacker-football) in the 1970s.

91. Kaci Lyle, wrestling: Talk about pioneers! She is one of the top female wrestlers in the United States, earning a spot in international and national competition while still competing at Eureka High School.

92. Joe Myers, basketball: Humboldt State's basketball teams in the 1950s were led by Myers after a brilliant career at South Fork High School.

93. Bud Scott, track: This Eureka star was the first HDNL athlete to claim a state title, earning a win in the high jump at the 1927 state track meet. His winning mark, 6 feet, 1 3/4 inches, still rates as on of the best in school history.

94. Bob Box, baseball: The Arcata High left-hander starred in high school, then shined in the 1970s for the Humboldt Crabs before turning pro and earning an All-Century Team berth.

95. Tom Miles, multi-sport: This St. Bernard High star was an All-Century football lineman who was a wrestling champion in the H-DNL before moving on to shine at St. Mary's College.

96. Karin Lyon, multi-sport: She went on to star in basketball at Chico State after one of the finest multi-sport careers in H-DNL history at St. Bernard and, later, at CR.

97. Darrell Brown, basketball: An HSU Hall of Famer who is among the all-time leading scorers in Lumberjacks history after starring in the 1940s.

98. Gary Thompson, football: This Eureka native starred at College of the Redwoods and played more games in the National Football League as a defensive back for the Buffalo Bills in the 1980s than any modern-era local pro star.

99. Morrie Roe, multi-sport: This bullish 1993 Arcata High grad was a dominating basketball and football star who went to the University of Hawaii on a football scholarship. One of the best pure athletes in H-DNL history.

100. Glen Borland, track/cross country: Qualified in the California Interscholastic Federation prep championships in the mile (1976) and the two-mile (1977). Only local runner to break 4:20 in the mile and 9:20 in the two-mile.

(Ted Sillanpaa, Que Schafer, Adam Hall and Marcos Mocine-McQueen contributed to this story. Thursday will feature a look athletes of the century No. 11 through No. 50.)


©1999 Times-Standard
Wed, Dec 29, 1999

 

Farewell to all-century lists

You gotta' love 2000 already.

With the dawn of the new year, so ended 1999 and the year of the all-century list.

The Times-Standard's selection of All-Century Baseball and All-Century Football teams were fun, although exhausting to research. Our North Coast Athletes of the Century list was really tough to pick. How do rate 100 athletes from 100 years of area sports? We tried our best.

There are all-century questions to answer and observations still to make:

A couple folks wrote to ask why specific athletes were left off the top 100.

There's no good answer, because there were more than 100 great athletes in the last 100 years. A perfect example is Fortuna track and field star Clint Duey. He could've easily been on the top 100 list. But, then again, McKinleyville basketball star Isaac Gildea and former Humboldt State hoop legend George Ibaretta could've been there, too. Why not Chris Roete, the women's basketball star from Fortuna and College of the Redwoods?

The list was a team effort and our whole team had input. We did our homework and did our best to be fair.

As recently as the 1960s, Humboldt-Del Norte League teams had heavyweight and lightweight teams.

The women's all-century basketball team would've only gone back about 15-20 years.

Still, since so many people asked, here are Sillanpaa's All-Century Basketball Teams:

MEN

Dick Soares: Eureka High, Santa Clara.

Bob Allord: Arcata High, Oregon State.

John Murray: Eureka High, Stanford.

Gary Mendenhall: St. Bernard, Santa Clara.

Al Erickson: Eureka, Humboldt State.

WOMEN

Heidi Bowman: South Fork, Marquette

Trina McCartney: McKinleyville, Oregon State

Cindy Bradley: Eureka, Minnesota

Judy Griffith: Fortuna, Stanford

Karen Logan: Fortuna

With that, a fond farewell to all-century lists.

WHO'S NO. 1? Despite folks who insist we've deemed Arcata High's boys the best team around, and others who say we call Hoopa's boys No. 1, we've not published a newspaper poll calling any area' boys basketball team as the best around.

However, if people are going to tell us what we think:

Best in the Big Five: Del Norte.

Best in the Little Four: Hoopa.

They will meet down the line and determine who's best, with Arcata and the rest having chances to prove they are No. 1 on the court.


©1999 Times-Standard
Sun, Jan 02, 2000