Westridge School Centennial - Inaugural Athletics Hall of Fame

a t h l e t i c s

Hall of Fame

j a n u a r y 10 , 2 014

a century of

tiger pride There is no way Mary Ranney could have imagined the passage of Title IX, which became law on June 23, 1972.

Senator Birch Bahy said at the time, “This...is an important first step in the effort to provide for the women of America something that is rightfully theirs—an equal chance to attend the schools of their choice, to develop the skills they want...” Title IX ushered in the modern era of women’s sports.

Such a statement from a United States senator would have been unimaginable in 1913, a year when women did not yet have the right to vote in national elections. Nevertheless, from its earliest beginnings, Westridge had a robust and lively tradition of athletic competition. Mary Ranney herself created an intense intra-school rivalry between Greeks and Romans that resulted in many hard fought and closely contested athletic events.

Perhaps one early indication that Westridge School would have a long, illustrious history of athletic achievements was the fact that Mary Ranney located the school adjacent to an existing family gymnasium, which she promptly rented from the Fleming family to serve as a meeting space and as an athletic venue. Later, Tod Ford, whose daughter Marian ’27 was a Westridge student, purchased the “Old Gym” and donated it to Westridge.

In 1919, equipment for basketball and volleyball was installed on campus and a diamond laid out for baseball.

In 1920, four Westridge students competed in the annual Ojai tennis tournament. In the 1930s the athletic program blossomed. Ruby Bishop ’31 and Jane Sharp ’32 represented Westridge in regional and national tournaments winning numerous titles. In 1931, Ruby won the girls’ national singles championship by defeating the number one nationally ranked player at the time, Alice Marble!

In time, Westridge added gymnastics, swimming, and field hockey. To accommodate the expansion of the athletics program, Westridge built a playground and athletic field at the corner of Pasadena Avenue and Glenarm.

The list of outstanding athletes and competitors who have represented Westridge with honor, sportsmanship, and distinction is long and includes national champions, Olympians, and California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section (CIF-SS) champions. The school’s history of great anecdotes of both victory and defeat provide evidence that Westridge was always about “Striving to Rise” on the field and on the court with an intensity that equaled the dedication to academics and the arts.

2014 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES Brooke Bennett ’07 Brooke Bennett was a member of the 2004 CIF-SS Division III championship girls 200 freestyle relay team. During Brooke’s tenure at Westridge she earned six Prep League swimming championships (individual and relay) and one Prep League championship in water polo. Brooke went on to Amherst College and swam for the varsity women’s swimming and diving team for four years. In her senior year, she was team captain.

Ruby Bishop Bixler ’31 Ruby Bishop had established herself as a junior tennis phenomenon even before she enrolled at Westridge. She successfully competed through the ranks of junior players year after year at the prestigious Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament, one of the largest amateur tennis events in the United States. Along with classmate Jane Sharp ’32, she won championships at Forest Hills, NY and La Jolla, CA, and pulled off a stunning upset to defeat Alice Marble for the National Championship at The Country Club in Brookline, MA in 1931. After losing the championship to Ruby, Alice Marble then began training with Ruby Bishop’s coach! In addition, Ruby and Jane Sharp teamed up to win many doubles titles.

Jennifer Poehler Eastlack ’91 Jennifer Poehler attended Westridge from 1985 to 1991. During her high school years, she was a three-sport athlete in soccer, volleyball, and softball. Physically gifted, tall, and strong, she also possessed a competitive instinct and was a team leader. As a standout goal keeper on outstanding soccer teams, she was often “the difference” in close games. She won all-league awards in soccer for four years, and was Second Team All-League in volleyball and softball. Jennifer went on to play goal keeper on the Stanford varsity women’s soccer team and set records with her goal keeping. From 1991 to 1994, she was ranked 10th in the Pac-10 with 11 shutouts out of 29 games. In 1994, she was named to the All-American Pac-10 First Team.

Lauren Gibbs ’02 During her years at Westridge, Lauren Gibbs was a standout performer in both volleyball and track and field. In 2001, she was Prep League First Team for volleyball. In 1999, 2000, and 2001, she was the Division IV CIF-SS long jump champion and was the triple jump champion in 2002. She was twice All-Prep League and was team MVP in volleyball in 2000 and 2001, a year when she was also named team captain. She went on to play varsity volleyball for Brown University where she was named Second Team All-Ivy for 2004 and 2005. In 2003, she played in 77 out of 78 games for Brown and led the team with 270 kills. She also led the team in blocks.

Anne DeWitt Granick ’89 Anne DeWitt attended Westridge from 1983 to 1989. Anne was a three-sport star who made an immediate impact on the soccer, softball, and volleyball teams by earning 11 varsity letters along with 10 all-league distinctions. She was team captain six times in her three sports and her leadership extended outside of athletics as student body president in 1989. As a senior, Anne’s fondest athletic memory is Westridge Soccer winning 19 consecutive games culminating in an upset victory over top-seeded Ontario Christian for the Division I-A CIF-SS Championship with a score of 2-0. Anne scored both goals and was named the 1989 CIF-SS Division I-A Offensive Player of the Year. She went on to graduate from UCLA and credits Westridge as a nurturing place that fostered her self-esteem and leadership abilities.

Katie Icaza ’04 Katie Icaza distinguished herself throughout her high school career at Westridge in both swimming and academics. She collected a total of seven Prep League championships from 2001 to 2004. In 2002, she was the 50 freestyle CIF-SS Division III champion and in 2004, she swam with the CIF Division III championship 200 freestyle relay team. In addition to those accomplishments, Katie was a member of the All-America Interscholastic Swimming team based on scholastic and athletic achievement. She was also a selected member of the Women’s Scholastic All America Team in 2001-2002 and 2002-2003. In 2002, she was included among the Girls’ All America Swimmer list for her performance in both the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle race.

Katie went on to attend Brown University after graduating from Westridge.

Jill Isaacs Mullen ’83 In 1983, Jill Isaacs was named High School Athlete of the Year. She had been ranked in Southern California tennis since the age of 12 and played in both national clay court and national hard court championships. For four years, she was ranked as the number one girls’ singles player, and was named Most Valuable Player by Westridge School. She was two-year all-CIF most valuable player and California doubles champion in the Lipton Challenge Cup. Jill attended the University of the Pacific for one year before becoming a professional tennis player in 1987.

Anne Kursinski ’76 Anne Kursinski began her training as an equestrian at a very early age. After graduating from Westridge in 1976, she trained with Flintridge-based trainer, Jimmy Williams, who prepared her to represent the United States at an international equestrian event in Calgary, Alberta (Canada). She and her horse finished third. From there, Anne competed successfully in international equestrian events in 1983, including the Grand Prix of Rome, and the Pan American Games in Caracas, Venezuela where she led team USA to a gold medal. She was named to the United States Olympic team in 1988 in Seoul, Korea; in1992 in Barcelona, Spain; in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia; and in 2008 in Beijing, China. Over a period of 25 years, she represented the United States in major equestrian events and in the Olympics with impressive success and with personal distinction.

Dorothy Hughes Matthiessen ’52 The Westridge tradition of strong tennis teams continued with Dorothy Hughes Matthiessen ’52. Although her first love as an athlete was always tennis, Dorothy is a gifted athlete who competed in many sports while at Westridge. In addition to winning tennis titles for Westridge from 1949 to 1952, she played on the volleyball and basketball teams.

One of her fondest tennis memories is winning “The Ojai” in 1951 and 1952. Later in her adult life, Dorothy began a new tennis chapter as she competed in national senior tennis competitions. Over a 35 year period of competition, she won 140 national titles, more than any other competitor, man or woman. She was ranked number one in her age group many times and won the “world” championships eight times. She has represented the United States on international cup teams 20 times. After many years of winning doubles titles, Dorothy began a training regimen to develop the stamina to compete successfully as a singles player. Just as she had been a dominant doubles player, she became a dominant singles player, a status she maintained until recently. Dorothy is currently the grandmother of Westridge alumnae, Annsley Matthiessen ’13 and Amanda Matthiessen ’13 who, along with a third and fourth granddaughter, Julia Matthiessen ’14 and Olivia Matthiessen ’17 have all kept the family tennis tradition alive. All of Dorothy’s granddaughters have participated on a Westridge Prep League Championship team, some with an undefeated season.

Kelly McCall ’07 Kelly McCall was a force in two varsity sports at Westridge: volleyball and water polo. In 2006, she was named CIF-SS Division IV Girls Volleyball Player of the Year. In 2007, as team captain, Kelly led the Westridge varsity volleyball team to a perfect 12-0 season to win the first CIF-SS volleyball championship in Westridge history. The varsity volleyball team made the playoffs each of the four years that Kelly played on the team. Also a key player on the varsity water polo team, Kelly was co-captain in 2007, the same year that volleyball won the championship. The water polo team reached CIF-SS playoffs before losing in the first round to Burbank High School. They finished a great season with a record of 12-8. After her outstanding record as an athlete at Westridge, Kelly attended Southern Methodist University.

Heather Miller ’94 Heather Miller competed in track meets for Westridge every year from 7th Grade until her graduation in 1994. During her high school years at Westridge, Heather set numerous school and CIF-SS Division I records in both the 200-meter and 400-meter events. The 1993 Westridge track team ranked 12th in the state and was the largest track and field team in Westridge history.

Heather was the inspirational leader of the team. She was a CIF-SS champion in 1993 and 1994. Heather went on to compete in track for the Stanford University track & field team where her accomplishments were impressive. In 1997 she ranked number one in the 100-meter competition. That same year, she ranked number two in the 200 meters. In 1998, her final year of Pac-10 competition, she finished 17th in the 100-meter dash and 12th in the 200-meter dash.

Briana Price ’04 Briana Price led the Westridge swimming and diving teams throughout her high school career. In 2003, she was the Prep League champion for the 200 freestyle event and also swam with the Prep League champion 400-yard freestyle relay team that same year. From 2001 to 2004, Brianna won five Prep League championships and one CIF-SS Division III championship as part of the 200 freestyle relay team in 2004. Brianna received very special recognition in 2003 as a finalist on the Girls All-America list for the Independent High School 400yard freestyle relay.

Christine Shu ’04 Christine Shu was both a distinguished student and an outstanding athlete during her years at Westridge from 1995 to 2004. Christine was a fencer. She began fencing at a young age, found that she loved it, and competed out of the Beverly Hills Fencers Club, where she trained for many years.

Because Westridge did not have a fencing team, most of her accomplishments, awards, and championships were not well known by her friends and classmates. However, she competed as an individual for Westridge in CIF-SS competitions.

In 2002, she was the girls’ individual foil competitor at the Southern California Scholastic Fencing League finals. She finished 20th out of 117 fencers in the Under-17 division of the Junior Olympics competition in 2002. Throughout the time she was an outstanding junior fencer, she excelled academically at Westridge. From Westridge she went on to attend Colby College where she majored in International Studies and Russian language. In 2009, she was awarded a Rotary Ambassador Scholarship to study for a full year in Kazakhstan. She first became interested in learning Russian when she worked with a Russian-speaking fencing coach in high school.

Taunye Sirk ’89 Taunye is one of three all-star members of the 1989 soccer team that won the Division I-A CIF-SS Championship. She shared the I-A title of Girls Soccer Player of the Year with her team mate, Anne DeWitt.

From 1986 to 1989 she was All-League First Team, and in 1989 she was All-League Defensive MVP. The 1989 soccer team set a record with 19 consecutive wins in a single season. In addition to her key role as a dominant defensive soccer player, Taunye was a leader of the volleyball team and was recognized as All-League Honorable Mention.

From a team loaded with talent, Taunye was a stand-out defensive player who helped Westridge dominate the field from end-to-end.

“Play up, play up and

Alden Sorenson ’06 Alden Sorenson distinguished herself in two water sports. She was an outstanding member of the swim team and a member of the CIF-SS Division III championship girls 200-yard freestyle relay team in 2004. In 2006, she was a co-captain of the varsity water polo team that lost only four league games. The team finished in second place with Alden as a steady team leader.

Joan Lamb Ullyot ’57 Joan Lamb Ullyot was a late bloomer as a long distance runner. She was a selfdescribed “couch potato” until long after she graduated from Westridge. From there, she went on to attend Wellesley and earned a medical degree from the Harvard School of Medicine. Through her medical practice, she began to research the important relationship between regular exercise and physical health. She published Women’s Running, a best-selling book about the positive effects of long-distance running and became a competitive marathoner herself. In 1971, she ran her first race, the famous Bay-to-Breakers in San Francisco. In 1973, she finished sixth in the First International Women’s Marathon in Germany. In 1977, she finished seventh among women runners at the Boston Marathon. In 1982, she finished 12th among women at the Paris Marathon—her 48th marathon! Joan belongs in the Westridge Hall of Fame not only for her achievements as an author and pioneering woman marathoner, but also because of the encouraging example she set for others. She was one of only eight women in a class of 160 at Harvard Medical School. She is a pioneer in the field of sports medicine and psychology and the author of several books, including the aforementioned Women’s Running, as well as Running Free and The New Women’s Running. Joan credits Westridge as a motivating influence in her life, “Westridge made me feel independent. We at Westridge grew up knowing that we could do anything.”

Erica Wu ’14 Erica Wu first took up table tennis at age 7. She took to the sport immediately and was soon on her way to becoming an elite player. In 2010, she began to compete nationally and was internationally sponsored by the New York Athletic Club. She competed in the Pan American Games in 2011. As a member of the United States National team in 2011, she won the women’s doubles championship and earned the title again in 2012. Later that year, she made the United States Olympic team and competed in the summer games in London. Although Westridge does not have a table tennis team, and it is not a CIF sport, Erica has encouraged participation in table tennis by working with the Table Tennis Club and giving demonstrations for her fellow students who have been amazed by the speed of her game and the velocity of her shots. Given her success at such a young age, it is likely that she has just begun a great career as an athlete on the international stage.

play the game.”

— Ruby Bishop ’31, 1931 Inlook

westridge sch o o l athletic C hampionships Basketball

Prep League Champions 1982–1983 1983–1984 1984–1985 1996–1997 2003–2004 2004–2005 CIF Quarter Finalists (Division IV-A) 1996–1997

C ross - Country Prep League Champions 1993–1994

CIF State Finalist 1994–1995: Sarah Martin

Fencing

CIF Individual Foil 2001–2002: Christine Shu 2002–2003: Christine Shu

So ccer

Prep League Champions 1985–1986 1988–1989 1994–1995 1995–1996 1996–1997 1997–1998 1998–1999 CIF Quarter & Semi Finalists (Division IV-A) 1988–1989 1995–1996 1996–1997 1999–2000 2004–2005 2006–2007

Softball

Academic Team Champions 1994–1995 1995–1996

Swimming

Track & Field Prep League Champions 1991–1992 1994–1995 1995–1996 2005–2006

Prep League Champions 1985–1986 1998–1999 2003–2004 2005–2006 2007–2008 2008–2009

CIF Swimming Champion, 50-yard freestyle 2001–2002: Katie Icaza

CIF Long-Jump Champion 1998–1999: Lauren Gibbs 1999–2000: Lauren Gibbs 2000–2001: Lauren Gibbs

CIF Swimming Champion, 200 Freestyle Relay 2003–2004: Brooke Bennett, Katie Icaza, Briana Price, Alden Sorenson

Volle yball

Diving

CIF Triple Jump Champion 2001–2002: Lauren Gibbs CIF State Participant 2006–2007: Shahar Thomas

Prep League Champions 2006–2007 CIF Champions (Division IV-AA) 2006

3rd place in State 2001: Grace Wells

CIF State Quarter Finalists 2006

Tennis

Water P olo

Prep League Champions 1976–1977 1979–1980 1980–1981 1981–1982 1983–1984 2011–2012 2012–2013 2013–2014

Prep League Champions 2004–2005

CIF Champions (Division I-A) 1980–1981

CIF Champions (Division IA) 1988–1989

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