Pioneer Points
Cal State East Bay Director of Athletics Debby De Angelis.
- April 28, 2010
Though the weather has been trying to tell us otherwise, spring is in full swing, which means the Pioneer sports seasons are all coming to a close. For the teams, the end of the season brings honors and a chance to focus on school as the end of the quarter approaches, while for the Athletic Department, this time of year gives us a chance to recognize both our current Pioneers at our annual Student-Athlete Awards Banquet, as well as our former Pioneers at the 2010 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. With these events quickly approaching, life in the Athletic Department is as busy as ever.
After one of its most successful seasons in program history, the Pioneer women's water polo team collected several honors last week from the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA). Freshman Claire Pierce was named Newcomer of the Year for the conference after leading East Bay with 80 goals in the regular season, meanwhile Head Coach Lisa Cooper collected Coach of the Year honors after guiding the team to a 21-11 record and a No. 3 seeding at the WWPA Tournament, its highest seed ever. Joining Pierce on the All-WWPA Second Team was senior Jenna Casady, who is now the Pioneers' all-time assists leader and led the NCAA in helpers this season. Junior Liz Warren was also honored with an All-WWPA Honorable Mention selection, rounding out a quality season that saw her become East Bay's all-time goals leader.
The Pioneer baseball team closed out its first season competing in the CCAA over the weekend, honoring 10 seniors in James McShane, Jimmy Ly, Jeff Croft, Stephen Gatehouse, Levi Josewski, Richie Gonzalez, Devin Grigg, Matt McCormick, Aaron Hannigan and Jake Walter, on Sunday. East Bay finished the season with two conference players of the week in the final month as junior Paul Jinkens tied the program record for single-game strikeouts with 15 on April 17 to join junior Nick McManus as the second Pioneer baseball player to pick up weekly conference honors.
Not all of the Pioneer seasons are over, however, as the men's and women's track teams will head to La Jolla for CCAA Championships this weekend. This season has seen the Pioneers find success in several events, including five top-10 finishers in the women's division at the Shamrock 5K in March and five top-10 finishes at the Jack Albiani Invitational.
With the year coming to a close, excitement is building in the Athletic Department for the 2010 Cal State East Bay Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on May 15. This year's class includes five former Pioneer student-athletes and one former coach, while the 1988 women's soccer national championship team will also be honored at the event. Former volleyball and softball player Angel Alcorcha, baseball player Archie Gilbert, track and field athletes Miloe McCall and Darryl Robinson, and former basketball player Leah (Thornton) Pero will all be inducted, along with former men's and women's soccer coach Colin Lindores.
The entire university community is invited to join us in the celebration, which will be held at 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 15 at the New University Union Multipurpose Room. Those wishing to attend can register for the event on the Athletic Department before May 7. Please join us for a night of memories, fun and Pioneer pride.