2013 ATHLETICS

HALL OF FAME

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he SCC Athletic Hall of Fame was established to recognize those who have contributed to the school’s athletics program. The recipients’ achievements are now enshrined on the Athletic Hall of Fame, a brick wall located on the northwest part of campus near the Fitness Center.

This year’s fourth class of inductees honors a former head baseball coach who helped set the foundation for SCC’s elite baseball program, a two-time All-American volleyball player, and a two-sport star who earned first-team All American honors in track and field and all-conference, all-region honors in basketball.

LARRY SMITH Former SCC head baseball coach Larry Smith’s career as a baseball coach has taken him all over the country and world. A Scottsdale High School graduate, he played for legendary Arizona State University baseball coach Bobby Winkles and even served as an assistant coach to ASU’s Jim Brock. In fact, it was Winkles who called to see if Smith would be interested in a head coaching job at Texas Wesleyan University. That was the start of a coaching career that saw him also serve as head coach at Indiana University and Duke University and assistant coach at Arizona State University and Northwestern University. Smith also worked for the Texas Rangers, Cincinnatti Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates. Smith coached the SCC men’s baseball team from 1989 to 1999. Under his leadership, the Artichokes competed in four regional tournaments, winning it in 1997. That team would go on to finish third in the NJCAA World Series Division I, earning Smith District Coach of the Year honors. With the help of long-time assistant coach Ed Yeager, his SCC teams compiled a 319-256 record. In 2010, Smith was inducted into the Arizona Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.

KAREN WEITZ Karen Weitz is one of the most successful high school basketball coaches in Nevada history. Her women’s teams at Centennial High School in Las Vegas have won six state championships, earning Weitz Coach of the Year honors four times. But before all her success at the coaching level, she was a twosport star at Scottsdale Community College. Although she only competed as an Artichoke for one academic year, she left her mark in two sports: basketball and track and field. In fact, she was the NJCAA national javelin champion and first team All-

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American in track and field. Her basketball court performance earned her all-Region, all-Conference honors. “When you do two sports, it’s a lot to commit to and a lot of work,” said Weitz, a native of Milton-Freewater, Oregon. She came to SCC to play basketball for Coach Bike Medder. When she arrived, she filled out a survey and noted that she participated in track and field in high school. That was all it took for SCC track and field coaches to add her to the team. “I was fortunate to have great coaches at SCC, both track and field and basketball,” said Weitz. “Even the weight room trainers were excellent.”

SANDY MARTIN Sandy Martin was an All-American volleyball player for Scottsdale Community College in both seasons she played for the Fighting Artichokes. Not only did she graduate from SCC, she became a two-time All-American in 1995 and 1996. “Regina Mannix was an awesome coach and talent,” said Martin. “She said she would help me graduate so I could attend a four-year school and she did.” After SCC, Martin went on to play for the University of Arkansas, where she finished as the school’s fifth-leading blocker. In her senior year, she was ranked 11th in the nation for blocking and led her team to a 30-7 record. She went on to play professionally in Austria. Martin is the first volleyball player to be inducted into the SCC Athletics Hall of Fame. “I think it means you’re old when you get into a Hall of Fame,” she joked. “But it also made me realize how nice it is to feel appreciated.” In 2007, Martin earned her college degree from Arizona State University in communications and religious studies. She now operates her own dog grooming business in Mesa, Ariz., and lives in Glendale.