College to Induct Eight into Athletic Hall of Fame
The Riverside City College Athletic Department will celebrate the College's 100th anniversary by inducting its largest Hall of Fame class since its inception. On October 22 at 5:30 pm in the Mission Inn Music Room, eight individuals will be honored for their contributions as well as success on the playing field.
Among them is possibly the College's most decorated athlete, Andrea Antonissen, a four-time All-American in swimming and water polo, and former Olympian and track standout, Astia Walker. Former major league baseball player, Jeff Bajenaru, will be honored in the male athlete category along with former tennis player, Marty Montigel.
Former men's basketball coach Bill Mulligan, who passed away in 2010 at the age of 79 and is the third winningest men's basketball coach in the history of men's basketball, will be enshrined and celebrated. He becomes the fourth men's basketball coach inducted into the Hall, joining Jerry Tarkanian, who Mulligan replaced at RCC, Dave Waxman and Bob Schermerhorn, who served as an assistant to Mulligan at UC Irvine.
Three other individuals will be honored for their contributions to the Tiger athletic program. Richard Ramirez, a former RCC athlete in football and baseball, will be presented the President's Award. Ramirez spent 14 of his 39 educational years as vice president of Student Services, which oversaw the athletic program. Mulligan's son, Billy Mulligan, who was tasked as the College's first sports information coordinator, will be honored with the Contributor Award. The Bengal Award will be presented to Sam and Blanche Knight. A former RCC men's basketball player, Knight and his wife, Blanche, a former RCC cheerleader, have become active members in the Tiger Backers.
Tickets are $75 and can be purchased by calling the RCCD District Foundation Office at (951) 222-8626.
Inductees:
Marty Montigel, Tennis, 1981-83 – In 1982, Marty Montigel was ranked No. 2 in Southern California in singles and teamed with Steve Cluse to form the southland's top junior college ranked doubles team. After a stellar career at RCC, Montigel, a graduate of Ramona High School, earned a scholarship to Texas Tech University. In his lone season at Texas Tech, Montigel, who played No. 4 singles and No. 2 doubles for the Red Riders, helped the program to a 16-15 overall record in 1985. After college Marty continued playing in open tournaments, achieving a Top 20 ranking in men's singles open. Marty has been teaching tennis for over 30 years, primarily as the head professional at Victoria Country Club. He was also the tennis director at the Riverside Tennis Center from 1991 to 2009. He has trained ranked junior and adult tennis players who have received scholarships to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Penn State and USC. A Riverside native, Monitgel has continued to give back to the community and the sport he loves. For the last seven years he has held a fundraiser for the RCC men's and women's tennis teams. He also sponsors local Ramona High School players with lessons. He continues all of this while running the Gas Pump Antique Store that his parents opened in 1982.
Jeff Bajenaru, Baseball, 1996-98 – A graduate of Ayala High School in Chino, Bajenaru became a two-way weapon for the Tigers, playing right field and closing out games. During his tenure at RCC, he earned all-conference, all-region and all-state honors. He hit .408 with four home runs, 22 doubles, two triples and 57 RBIs his sophomore season. On the mound, he had a 1-1 record with 20 strike outs in 10 innings. He finished the year with a 2.12 ERA. For his career at RCC, Bajenaru hit .380 (153 hits) with 115 runs scored, 35 doubles and 202 total bases. He knocked in 111 runs in his two-year career. The Tigers were 74-24 with a conference title during his RCC career. The Oakland Athletics drafted him in the 13th round after his sophomore season at RCC, but he elected not to sign instead accepting a scholarship at the University of Oklahoma. After his junior season Bajenaru was once again drafted, this time in the 36th round by the Chicago White Sox but again decided to return to school. In 2000, his senior season, he hit .342 with 11 HRs and 58 RBI. On the mound he was 1-2 with 20 saves (setting a conference and Oklahoma record for season and career saves) and a 2.62 ERA. He was a first team All-American as a utility player and a first team Big 12 Conference selection as an outfielder and second team Big 12 Conference pick as a relief pitcher. Projected to be taken between the second and fifth rounds of the 2000 draft, Bajenaru instead signed with the White Sox as a non-drafted free agent in May, prior to the draft. During his professional career, Bajenaru generally worked as a closer, striking out more than 10 batters per nine innings and collecting 24 wins and 91 saves in relief. He missed the 2002 season as a result of Tommy John surgery, but recovered resuming his career in 2003. He made his major league debut with the White Sox on September 4, 2004. He was a member of the 2005 World Series Championship Chicago White Sox team and the Pacific Coast League Champion Tucson Sidewinders team in 2006. In his five full minor league seasons he participated in three all-star games. He ended up retiring from professional baseball, while a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2008 due to two separate shoulder surgeries. Today, he is a minor league pitching instructor with the Diamondbacks and gives private hitting and pitching lessons.
Andrea Antonissen, Water Polo/Swimming, 2010-12 – Andrea Antonissen is considered RCC's most decorated student-athlete with two state water polo titles and twice earning MVP honors at a state championship in the same year. She was selected as the California Community College Sports Information Association Women's Athlete of the Year her sophomore season after having the distinction of earning MVP honors at two different state championship events in the same sports year, an unheard of feat at any college level. As a sophomore, she was the state tournament MVP as goalie for the Tigers after leading them to a 2011 CCCAA state title in women's water polo and a 32-1 overall record. Then in the 2012 swim season, Antonissen was named Co-Swimmer of the Year at the CCCAA state championship meet, winning three individual events with the nation's best time in the 50-yard freestyle (23.49 seconds), the nation's third best mark in the 100-freestyle (51.04 seconds), and the seventh best time in the 200-freestyle (1:54.37). Overall for the 2012 season, she finished as a top 10 All-American in a remarkable eight events, including all five relays. Antonissen was the Co-Orange Empire Conference Swimmer of the Year and a two-time All-American in water polo. She is a Riverside school record holder in the 100-freestyle as well as a conference record holder and school record holder in the 50-freestyle. In water polo, she was part of a magnificent 52-match win streak for the Tigers that went back to the 2009 season, and in her two years as goalie led Riverside to back-to-back state titles in the 2010 and 2011 seasons.
Astia Walker, Track and Field, 1993-95 – Born in Jamaica, Walker arrived at Riverside City College in 1993 and quickly made a name for herself, winning the state titles in the 100-meter hurdles, 100 meters and 200 meters as the College won the 1994 state championship. She went on to earn a scholarship to LSU where she helped the Tigers to four Southeastern Conference championships (two indoor and two outdoor). She was a three-time Southeastern Conference champion and won three national championships, two in relay events and the 100 hurdles her senior year. She went on to represent her country in the 2000 Summer Olympics in the 200 meters. To this day, she still holds RCC's record in the 200 meters and 100-meter hurdles.
Bill Mulligan, Coach, Men's Basketball, 1966-75 - Mulligan was a prominent community college coach at Riverside City College and Saddleback College, before eventually becoming the head coach at UC Irvine. In 1966, he replaced Jerry Tarkanian, who departed for Pasadena City College. Mulligan spent nine seasons at the helm of the Tigers, posting an overall record of 189-97. His 189 victories make him the third winningest coach in the program's history. His .661 winning percentage is sixth-best among coaches with five years or more service time. He posted five 20-win seasons. His 1972-73 team may have been his best. Behind players Tony Masi, Mark Warkentien, Walt Wilson, John Coit, Ray Johnson and Charles Aubert, the Tigers went 28-6 and won the conference title with a 15-1 record. Mulligan will become the fourth men's basketball coach to be inducted into the RCC Athletic Hall of Fame, joining Dave Waxman, Bob Schermerhorn and Tarkanian.
Richard Ramirez, President's Award – Richard Ramirez's roots reach deep into the College's history. Ramirez played baseball and football at RCC and later became vice p,resident of Student Services. In fact, 14 of his 39 years in education were spent at RCC. His educational path took him from Fremont Elementary School to Central Middle School, located across Magnolia from the campus, to Poly High School where he excelled in baseball for the Bears. At RCC, Ramirez was part of two championship football teams and served as the Tigers' team captain his sophomore season. He went on to attend the University of New Mexico on a football scholarship. After graduation, Ramirez returned to Riverside and began coaching in 1964 and eventually his career as an administrator. He has given countless hours to a variety of projects and organizations. Today, he continues his activism, serving with the Riverside Hospice Companion, the Poly High School Honor Walk, and Ben Hammerschmidt Scholarship committee. For the past 11 years he has served on the board of Parkview Hospital. He and his wife, Jan, have been married for 51 years and raised seven children in Riverside.
Bill Mulligan, Jr., Contributor Award – Billy Mulligan, Jr. reported on RCC athletics for 18 years, beginning his career in 1985 when Dr. Charles A. Kane, then president of the College, hired him to be co-sports information coordinator with Chris Foster, now a sports writer for the LA Times. Despite being born with cerebral palsy, Mulligan found a home behind a typewriter reporting on RCC athletics, its coaches and the student-athletes who played for the love of the game. Mulligan's passion for RCC athletics began when his father was named men's basketball coach. Armed with a degree from Cal State Fullerton in communications, Mulligan set out on a career that included a stop as an advisor for Viewpoints, the College newspaper. He was a fixture around the campus in his wheelchair. Today, he resides in San Clemente, where he follows his brothers' coaching exploits at Capistrano Valley High School and San Clemente High School. He continues to write, working on a family notebook and other projects. He still bleeds RCC black and orange even though he now calls San Clemente home.
Sam & Blanche Knight, Bengal Award – Sam Knight came to Riverside from Cleveland to play for Jerry Tarkanian and never left. He helped the Tigers to a state championship and met Blanche, a former Tiger cheerleader, whom he would later marry. They eventually settled into the Indian Hills neighborhood, northwest of Riverside. Together they raised four children, all of whom became exceptional athletes, only not in basketball. Through the years, the Knights have remained connected to RCC through the Tiger Backers. In the last year, Knight, along with other former Tarkanian players, have made it their mission to work with the Tarkanian family to hopefully erect a statue of Tarkanian in Wheelock Gym, remembering the icon coach for his successful years at RCC. Knight's effort to honor his former coach has reconnected the Knights with the College and the Tiger Backers.
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The above was courtesy of the RCC Office of Strategic Communications and Relations.