Cal State East Bay to induct six into Athletic Hall of Fame May 15
- February 18, 2010
The Cal State East Bay Athletic Department will induct six new members into the Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, May 15, Director of Athletics Debby De Angelis has announced. Five former standout student-athletes and one former coach will be honored at the Hall of Fame reception and dinner, joining the ranks of the numerous Pioneer legends inducted before them.
Women's volleyball and softball player Angel Alcorcha, baseball player Archie Gilbert, women's track and field athlete Miloe McCall, men's track and field athlete Darryl Robinson, women's basketball player Leah (Thornton) Pero and men's and women's soccer coach Colin Lindores comprise the 2010 induction class. The group of inductees were chosen by the Cal State East Bay Hall of Fame committee, convened every two years and comprised of one student-athlete, one alumnus, one faculty member and two coaches representing one men's and one women's sport.
A two-sport athlete at then-Cal State Hayward, Angel Alcorcha (1996-99) played two seasons for the Pioneer volleyball team and pitched for two years for the softball team. A two-time All-Nor Cal Athletic Conference (NCAC) First Team selection at outside hitter, Alcorcha led the Pioneers and was second in the conference in hitting percentage while guiding the team to a 20-13 overall record, setting a school record at the time. The next season, Alcorcha helped lead the Pioneers to its second-straight second-place showing in the NCAC and a 24-9 record, putting together an 11-match win streak during the 1997 campaign. As a pitcher for the softball team, Alcorcha earned NCAA All-West Region First Team honors in 1998 and led the Pioneers to second place in the Cal Pac Conference as a senior in 1999.
The Hayward resident earned a bachelor's degree in sociology in 1999 and went on to complete her master's in social work as one of the first students to receive a scholarship in the social work department and a member of the initial graduating class. Alcorcha currently works for the Alameda County Department of Children and Family Services.
"As a volleyball player, Angel was a ferocious competitor that hated to lose," Cal State East Bay women's volleyball head coach Jim Spagle said. "Always calm and collected on the court, inside rumbled a motor that I have rarely witnessed in 29 years of coaching.
"Angel was a leader in every sense of the word. She always made herself available to her team, whether to help a teammate through a rough stretch, challenge them or to demonstrate the standard of maximum effort which she always exhibited on and off the court. I am honored to have had the opportunity to coach this outstanding young woman. She is a true Hall of Famer, both athletically and personally."
An Association of Division III Independents first-team All-Independent selection, Archie Gilbert (2002-05) hit .358 over four seasons as a Pioneer, writing his name into the record books as one of the most prolific hitters and base stealers in Cal State East Bay history. Hailing from Hayward, Calif., Gilbert holds the Pioneer career records for runs, hits, RBI, doubles and triples. The James Logan High School product also ranks second all-time in homeruns with 26 and is among the top 10 in walks, stolen bases and batting average. Gilbert earned both an NCAA West Region Second Team selection and the Pioneer Male Athlete of the Year award as a senior in 2005 and was a 2004 Division III second-team All-American.
Since finishing his collegiate career, Gilbert has made his way up the ranks of the Oakland Athletics' minor league system. Last year Gilbert played for the Midland Rockhounds, helping the AA-affiliate capture the Texas League championship. Prior to joining the Rockhounds, Gilbert was named California League Postseason MVP with the A's single-A affiliate, the Stockton Ports, who took home the league title in 2008. Gilbert batted over .600 during the postseason and drove in eight runs in the four-game championship series. Gilbert also added his name to the Ports' record book, hitting for the cycle on June 19, 2008, and posting a California League season-high 25-game hitting streak in April and May.
"From the moment Archie stepped on the field as a freshman for his first game in a Pioneer uniform everyone noticed this is a young man who is a game changer," CSUEB head baseball coach Dirk Morrison said. "He is a player that makes plays that no one else makes, runs the bases with fierce determination and constantly hits the ball with authority.
"Archie has the passion and work ethic to survive in the very difficult competitive business of professional baseball. I have watched him play at this level and I can appreciate him now, more than ever, for his dedication and professional attributes."
Miloe McCall (1983-87) was a four-time NCAA Division II national qualifier and two-time All-American in the high jump and triple jump for the Pioneer track and field team. The Hayward native captured four consecutive NCAC titles in the triple jump, establishing a conference and school record of 40-11.5 and earning All-America honors in 1986 and 1987, when she finished fourth at the NCAA championships. Also a dominant high jumper, McCall collected three conference championships in the event, while earning two All-America certificates and setting a school and conference record at the time.
A 1990 graduate of Cal State East Bay, McCall earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry, going on to work for 10 years at SUGEN, a biotech company which developed cancer treatment drugs. Now a stay-at-home mom, McCall is the mother of one son.
"Miloe's consistent performance in the field events over her four-year career was a key reason for the continual success of the Cal State East Bay women's track and field teams of that era," nominator Glenn Park said in a letter.
A transfer from Cal State Fullerton, Darryl Robinson (1976-77) was a two-time All-American for the Pioneer track and field team. As a junior in 1976, Robinson set school records in both the indoor and outdoor pole vault events and claimed the Far West Conference (FWC) title before claiming second place at the NCAA Division II Championships. As a senior, Robinson helped lead the Pioneers to the NCAA team title, taking second again at the championship meet. Robinson also defended his FWC crown, claimed four meet titles and was ranked among the nation's top black pole vaulters during his second All-America season.
After graduating from Cal State East Bay with a bachelor's in recreation in 1979, Robinson became a police officer for the city of Santa Rosa, receiving the department's outstanding officer award twice. Robinson then went on to become a certified criminal defense investigator for the Sonoma County Public Defenders Office and member of the Defense Investigators Association of California, where he graduated from the Defense Investigators Training Accreditation program.
Leah Pero (2002-05) played three seasons under Head Coach Sara Judd at Cal State East Bay, helping the Pioneers to 59 wins during her time as a guard there. A three-time All-Cal Pac Conference honoree, Pero guided the Pioneers to their best season in program history, posting a 21-6 record in 2003-04 and helped East Bay notch the most victories in school history with back-to-back 21-win seasons. Pero was an NAIA second-team All-American and Cal Pac MVP as a senior, leading the Pioneers and setting season records for scoring average, free throws, free-throw percentage and consecutive free throws. The East Bay record books are riddled with evidence of Pero's impressive career, as she is the school's all-time leader in career free throws and field goals and ranks among the top 10 in nearly every statistical category. Pero was a two-time national scholar-athlete and collected the NAIA's Emil S. Liston Award as a junior for displaying scholarship, character and playing ability.
A cum laude graduate with a bachelor's in kinesiology in 2005, Pero went on to earn her teaching credential. She currently resides in Alameda, where she is as a physical education teacher and mother of two boys.
"Leah was a coach's dream," Judd said. "She was extremely talented on the court and dedicated in the classroom and to her teammates. She was at her best against the strongest competition and no one ever played the game with as much joy as she did."
The final inductee, Colin Lindores, was the head coach of the Cal State East Bay men's soccer team from 1976-89 and the women's team from 1982-89 and 1997-98. In 11 years at the helm for the Pioneer women, Lindores led the team to six straight NCAC championships and the 1988 NCAA Division II national title. Lindores was named National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division II Coach of the Year after taking home the national championship and was honored as NCAC Coach of the Year five times. Lindores compiled a record of 117-54-12 as the women's head coach and his .672 winning percentage is the best in program history.
On the men's side, Lindores guided the Pioneers for 14 seasons, going 146-86-36 and collecting seven NCAC titles. Lindores' teams earned NCAA Tournament berths five times, reaching the NCAA Division II Final Four in 1989. A three-time NCAC Coach of the Year, Lindores was also honored as the NSCAA Far West Region Coach of the Year several times. During his career, Lindores guided two Cal State East Bay teams that did not offer athletic scholarships, while competing against and beating opponents whose student-athletes received athletic scholarships.
Following his time at Cal State East Bay, Lindores led the Stanford men's program for six seasons, leading the Cardinal to two NCAA Tournament appearances. Lindores also served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Men's National Team at the Pan-Am Games in 1991 and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Lindores has been the co-head coach for the DeAnza College men's soccer team since 2003, helping guide the Dons to four Coast Conference titles.
"No single coach in the history of this university has been more successful than Colin Lindores," former Cal State East Bay Director of Athletics Al Mathews said in a recommendation letter.
The six Cal State East Bay Athletic Hall of Fame inductees and the 1988 Cal State East Bay women's soccer national championship team will be honored at a reception and dinner to be held in the University Union on the Hayward campus on May 15, as well as at other events to be held throughout the week of May 10. Online registration is available on the Cal State East Bay Athletic Department . For more information on the 2010 Hall of Fame induction, please contact Assistant Athletic Director Marissa Parry at marissa.parry@csueastbay.edu or (510) 885-2810.