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XC & TRACK ATHLETE HALL OF FAME

Alison Adams (1980)

Alison Adams became a Campolindo Cougar in her senior year when Del Valle High School of Walnut Creek closed its doors in 1979. The already accomplished long sprint star set the 400m school record at 56.44, a mark that stood atop the all-time list for 39 years. Adams also contributed a leg to the school record setting 1600 relay team.

Adams returned to the sport as a coach and official and became a physical education teacher and coach at Campolindo in the late '90s. Adams has served on the NCS track & field advisory committee and been the head umpire at the NCS Meet of Champions for over 2 decades.

Tiffany Chang (2001-2004)

A 4-time NCS champion in the pole vault, including 2 Meet of Champions victories, Chang was coached by long-time area track & field genius Scott Brady-Smith. Chang set the Contra Costa area record and the NCS Meet of Champions record in the vertical event.

Chang also set the Campolindo record in the triple jump. She went on to compete for Brown University where she made multiple podium appearances at the HEPS and was named team captain as a junior.

Maddy Doane (2016-2019)

After multiple knee injuries sustained playing soccer, Doane finally made the transition to track in her junior season, where she posted impressive marks in the short and long sprints. After a season of cross country in the fall of her senior year, Doane returned to the track with a new level of fitness. In 2019 Doane performed the sprint quadruple of the 400 relay, 400m, 100m, and 200m at every dual meet. She went undefeated.

By the end of her senior track season, Doane had set the 100m, 200m, 400m individual school records and had contributed a leg to the school record 400 relay. In that same season Doane advanced to the CIF state championships in the 400 relay, 400m, and 200m.

She followed her brief but extraordinary high school track career with an outstanding 4 years of sprint success at UCLA where she helped their relay teams advance to the NCAA championship finals on multiple occasions.

Bill Freeborn (1982-1985)

Bill Freeborn stands alone as the greatest horizontal jumper in school history. His 23-foot, 2-inch long jump mark and his 47-foot, 1-inch triple jump mark, have not been challenged by a Campolindo athlete since he accomplished them in 1985. Freeborn qualified for State in the triple jump and went on to compete collegiately for UCLA.

Rod Fuhriman (1982-1985)

Though he had run cross country, Fuhriman was a tennis player who didn’t go out for track until his senior year. As a rookie senior, he won the Meet of Champions 1600m in a time of 4:17.0ce against two of the best runners in the state (Castro Valley’s Calvin Gaziano and Miramonte’s Adam McAboy).According to his coach, Ramsey Thomas, it was the only race of consequence he ever won.

Fuhriman placed 5th in the 1600m at State and was quoted as saying he could have kicked himself for not going out for track until his senior year. He also anchored the school record 2-Mile Relay at the Charlie Eaton Relays.

Aidan Goltra (2013-2014)

Goltra began his running career successfully in the Pleasanton Heat youth program before enrolling at Las Lomas High School where he spent 2 years underperforming, falling short of advancing to the cross country state championships. He then transfered to Campolindo prior to his junior cross country season. The move paid off for Goltra, as he ascended to the top of the CIF D3 cross country state championship podium. He followed that with a 2nd individual cross country state title in 2013, setting the top time of the meet and earning an invitation to the Nike XC Nationals in Portland.

Goltra also advanced to the track & field state championship finals in the 3200m. Following graduation, he competed for Columbia University.

Rich Gunther (1968-1971)

Gunther set the school record in discus with an outstanding mark of 182-8. He went on to be a competitive collegiate thrower at UCLA when they were dominating college track in the early '70s. He later became an Athletic Director in Modesto and mentored American record setter Suzy Powell.

Tom Hale (1968-71)

The premier NCS distance runner of his day, Hale won several league and section titles. He set school records in the Mile and 2 Mile, and finsihed 4th at the CIF state track & field championships in the 2 Mile (8:57.4y) in what was at the time the fastest overall race in US history, a race which Hale led until the final lap. His 8:57.4y finish set the NCS record.

Hale broke 28 minutes for 6 miles at the University of Oregon (sub 4:40 mile pace/sub 14:35 5k pace). He was an absolute beast when it came to training. Due to his legendary repeat sessions on it, the biggest hill on the Rim Trail was known as "Hale's Hill."

Hale went on to become an avid cyclist and established Back Roads Bike Tours, a bicycle touring company based in Marin.

Kristen Hepler (1980-1981)

Kristen Hepler transferred from Del Valle High School when it closed before her junior year. While Del Valle did not offer girls' track & field, like Campolindo record setter Alison Adams, she ran for Don Bailes’ Orinda Track Club. Hepler set the 200m school record, ran a 58-second 400m, and contributed a leg to the school record 1600 relay.

Thomas Joyce (2009-2012)

Thomas Joyce was forced by his parents to participate in cross county as a freshman and he barely made the top 7 on the frosh soph squad that season. Over the course of his career, he transformed himself into one of the greatest athletes in school history. Joyce finished on the podium at the cross country state championship as a senior, running the 5k distance in 15:19, a school record at the time. He followed that with a track season for the ages, which included setting the school record in the 1600m, sweeping all 3 distance events at the league championships, and qualifying for the CIF state championships in both the 1600m and 3200m.

Joyce was named East Bay Times runner of the year. He went on to set the University of California at Berkeley school record and reach the NCAA finals in the 1500m, and break the 4-minute barrier in the mile.

Steve Kirkland (1966-1969)

Also on the all-time list for the 400m, Kirkland set the 800m school record (1:54.24) in 1969. It is one of the longest standing records in school history.

Brighie Leach (2012-2015)

No other athlete has ever held the school record in all 3 individual distance events, but in her senior track season, Leach set the 800m, 1600m, and 3200m records. In 2015, her 1600m mark of 4:43.96, which earned her a spot on the podium at the Brooks PR National Championships in Seattle, was among the top 50 high school marks in American history.

Leach won the NCS Meet of Champions 1600m and 3200m titles as a junior, and the 3200m title again as a senior. In addition to her individual accomplishments, Leach contributed to school records in the distance medley relay and the 4 x 1600 relay.

Leach finished as the runner-up in the 2013 CIF D3 cross country state championship race, leading her squad to the team victory. She was also the NCS D3 champion in that same season.

As a 4-year cross country and track competitor at Princeton University, Leach transitioned to the steeplechase event.

Sarah Riley (1988-1991)

Coached by Chris Walsh, Sarah Riley became the first Campolindo individual state champion in cross country in the fall of 1989. She went on to set the school record in the 3200m with the first sub-11:00 performance in school history.

Riley follwed her high school career with 4 years of outstanding performances at Notre Dame.

Lisa Sandel (1979-1980)

Sandel moved to Moraga for her senior year after growing up in Alaska where she was a state champion. She had epic battles against Miramonte’s Marilyn Davis and Marcia White in cross country and track. By the time she was finished, she had set school records in the 800m (2:13.2) and 1600m (4:48.4). Sandel won the NCS Meet of Champions title and finsihed 5th in the state in the 1600m.

Sandel eventually moved to Dallas where she became a law enforcement officer. Unfortunately, Sandel died in the line of duty during a high speed pursuit accident.

Jackie Shuh (1982-1985)

Coached by long-time East Bay track icon Jack Walton, Shuh became the school record holder in the 100m and anchored the 400 relay record-setting team.

Gregg Thornton (1976-1979)

Son of legendary Cal swim coach Nort Thornton, who coached Campolindo's Matt Biondi (American record setter and Olympian), Gregg Thornton set the 100m and 400m school records in 1979. He also anchored the school record setting 400 relay. Thorton advanced to the CIF state championships in both the 100m and 400m in his senior season.

Carrie Verdon (2009-2012)

Fancying herself a soccer player, Verdon particpated in cross country her freshman year in order to meet friends and improve her fitness. By the end of that season she was the top performer on the varsity girls' squad and finished 11th at the state championships. Verdon would go on to have one of the greatest high school distance running careers in Northern California history.

Verdon won back-to-back CIF D3 cross country individial state titles, set the all-time NCS individual mark on the Woodward Park 5k course, set school records in the 1600m and 3200m, and landed 3rd place in the 3200m at the CIF state track and field championships. Her 2010 cross country squad also won the CIF D3 state championship in convincing fashion. In that same season she advanded to the Footlocker cross country national championships, where she finished 19th. Verdon was named East Bay Times Athlete of the Year in 2011.

Heavily recruited, Verdon chose the University of Colorado, where she began her career as the top American finisher in the World Junior cross country Championships in Poland. During her collegiate years she was also an NCAA finalist in the 5k.

After a break from competitive running following college, Verdon returned to the track as a professional in 2020 and qualified for the USA Olympic Trials in the 5k and 10k in 2021. In 2022 Verdon made her professional 26.2-mile debut, finishing on the podium at the Chicago Marathon.

FAME PHOTOS NEEDED

Do you have photos or articles of past Campolindo cross country and track & field stars? Please forward them to Chuck Woolridge. We would love to include them in our Hall of Fame.


CAMPO HALL OF FAME

The Hall of Fame: Learn more about the history of Campolindo cross country and track & field. Check out the HALL OF FAME page HERE!