CCCAA announces 2023 Hall of Fame Induction Class

SACRAMENTO - Six outstanding former student-athletes, coaches and administrators, including a Major League Baseball Hall of Famer and NBA block shot legend, have been selected for induction into the California Community College Athletic Association Hall of Fame and will be honored during the organization’s annual convention in Sacramento next month, it was announced on Friday.

Comprising the 2023 class are former Taft College baseball standout and current Chicago Cubs broadcaster Ron Coomer, former Cypress College basketball and Utah Jazz star Mark Eaton,  baseball Hall of Fame member and former Cypress College baseball pitcher Trevor Hoffman, former Cabrillo College athletic trainer and athletic director Dale Murray, former Glendale College football coach and AD Jim Sartoris, and former De Anza College women’s basketball and volleyball coach Debi Schafer-Braun. 

“We’re excited to welcome these six outstanding individuals into our Hall of Fame,” said Executive Director Jennifer Cardone. “Their accomplishments are amazing but it’s their contributions as coaches, instructors and student-athletes that provide inspiration throughout our association.” 

This year’s ceremonies will be held on Wednesday, March 29 at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Sacramento beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets are available through the CCCAA Convention website here. 

This year’s class once again exemplifies the best of the best.

Coomer was a two-year star for Taft College, earning Western State Conference Player of the Year honors in 1986 while compiling an impressive .385 batting average and earning the first of two All-State honors. Taft moved to the Central Valley Conference the following year and Coomer enjoyed another strong season, helping the Cougars to a conference title while slamming 19 home runs and picking up 51 RBIs.

He went on to a nine-year Major League career, mostly with the Minnesota Twins. He was named to the 1999 American League All-Star team while a third baseman with the Twins. 

The 7-foot-4 Eaton was working as an automotive technician before being spotted by former Cypress assistant men’s basketball coach Tom Lubin while Eaton was looking through the window of a car that was raised on the auto lift. Though he had never played basketball, Eaton was convinced to join the basketball team, helping Cypress claim the state championship in 1980. He transferred to UCLA and was drafted in 1982 by the Utah Jazz.

Eaton played 11 seasons with Utah, establishing an NBA record for most blocked shots per game and fourth-most blocked shots overall. He was a beloved member of the organization and was recognized for his contributions by having his number (53) retired by the team in 1996. Eaton remained connected to Cypress throughout his life. He was named Alumnus of the Year in 2004 and was also inducted into the Cypress Athletics Hall of Fame. Eaton passed away in 2021. 

Hoffman’s path to professional sports also went through Cypress College. Although he is known as a pitcher, he actually began as a shortstop under former Chargers head coach Scott Pickler in 1985 and 1986. He was a two-time All-Orange Empire Conference player and received a scholarship offer to the University of Arizona where he was an All-Pac-10 first-team honoree, led the Wildcats in 1988 with a .371 batting average and was a team captain.

Hoffman was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in 1989 and while in the minor leagues was converted to a pitcher because of his amazing throwing ability. From there, he eventually embarked on a legendary 18-year MLB career – 16 of them with the San Diego Padres – and retired with a then-record 601 career saves. Hoffman was a seven-time All-Star, twice led the National League in saves and capped his baseball career by being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018.

He remains connected to the Cypress College baseball program by participating in annual fundraisers and being a vocal supporter of the team. Hoffman was named the 2013 Cypress College Man of the Year. 

Murray’s impact at Cabrillo College reached thousands of student-athletes through his more than four decades of service at the institution. After graduating from Long Beach State in 1973, Murray began a 47-year association with Cabrillo. He was the program’s athletic trainer from 1973-2000 and was the athletic director and an instructor from 1979-2016.

But beyond the roles he served at Cabrillo, Murray served the student-athletes most of all. Current Cabrillo College AD noted, “Besides his one hour of daily exercise, Dale could be found in his office, on the field or in the gym working to make sure student-athletes had a good experience while participating in athletics at Cabrillo College.” He expanded opportunities to female student-athletes at Cabrillo and also served as an assistant volleyball coach.

Murray was named the 2004 California Community College Athletic Director of the Year, has served as the Coast Conference Commissioner since 1989 and is regarded as one of the foremost authorities on the CCCAA Constitution & Bylaws, which he helped develop. 

Sartoris earned All-America honors as a quarterback and defensive back for Glendale Community College in 1963. He earned a scholarship to the University of Washington before returning to his alma mater where he began devoted service and a long association in 1969.

Sartoris served a variety of roles at Glendale, most notably as the head football coach from 1972-87 and then two different stints surrounding those years as an assistant. In the midst of his football commitments, Sartoris was the Vaqueros’ athletic director from 1985-2007 and made such a contribution that the field that serves as home to the football, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s track and field teams was dedicated and named in his honor in 2005.

He was inducted into the Glendale Community College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012, currently serves as its chair and is a member of the school’s Foundation Board of Directors. Since 2008, Sartoris has been commissioner of the Southern California Football Coaches Association, which is home to 36 community college football programs.

Schafer-Braun spent 40 years teaching and coaching at De Anza Community College, focusing on women’s volleyball, women’s basketball and men’s volleyball. During that long career, she amassed numerous awards, including being named the Golden Gate Conference Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year four times between 1976-1986 and the Women’s Volleyball Coach of the Year nine times between 1976-1992.

Schafer-Braun, who was an alternate in the 800-meter run at the 1972 Olympics and was later a member of the United States Field Hockey team, has received numerous honors for both her teaching and coaching. She was inducted into the California Community College Women’s Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2004, the CCC Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1993 and the De Anza College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012. 

She’s also a member of Hall of Fames at Cal State East Bay as a member of the 1972 track and field team, and Washington High School (Fremont). Schafer-Braun was named the California Physical Education Teacher of the Year in 2004.