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Hall of Fame: Members | Criteria for Membership
Major Sports Awards: Annual Award Winners
History
The history of athletics at Pomona College and more recently of Pomona and
Pitzer Colleges is as rich, complex, and storied as the Colleges themselves.
 Intercollegiate play began in 1895, when Pomona College's football, baseball,
and track teams competed against teams from the west coast. From 1895 until
1946, Pomona College competed as a single college under the names "Blue and
White," Pomona, the Huns, and the Sagehens. In 1946, Pomona College joined with
the neighboring Claremont Men's College to form the Pomona-Claremont Sagehens.
This union was an extremely successful one that yielded three consecutive
conference titles from 1954-1956, including a still unmatched undefeated season
in 1954. In 1956, the two colleges separated and competed independently. In
1970, seven years after its founding, Pitzer College joined Pomona in athletics
under an interim basis that in 1972 became permanent. The Pomona-Pitzer
athletics continue to this day.
 The history of the Pomona College mascot and nickname is a more complex matter.
As mentioned earlier, the college competed under a variety of names through
1913, when the nickname "Sage Hen" first appeared in a November 29, issue of
The Student Life:
"Once again the Oxy Tiger wanders from his lair and comes to peaceful, peaceful
Claremont with intent to murder. The Sage Hen will fight -- on the field. On the
campus she is entirely amicable."
- E. H. Spoor '15
Sports Editor,
The Student Life
From 1914 thru 1917, the nickname "Hun" and "Sagehen" were used arbitrarily.
Beginning in 1918 and continuing to the present, the Sagehen became the only
symbol of Pomona and later Pomona-Claremont, and Pomona-Pitzer athletics.
 In 1915, Pomona College, along with Whittier College, The University of
Redlands, Caltech, and Occidental College formed the Southern California
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). Since that time, La Verne College,
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, and California Lutheran University have become members.
During its history, the conference has had UCLA, UCSB, San Diego State
University, and a variety of others serve as members.
 What is a Sagehen, and how did it become our mascot? The first question is far
easier to answer than the second one.
The Sage Grouse, and more specifically, the
Greater Sage Grouse (Centrocercus
urophasianus) is a large ground-dwelling bird that can reach up to 30 inches in
length and two feet in height. It is distinguished by its long pointed tail. The
Greater Sage Grouse is an omnivore and eats mainly insects and sagebrush, hence
its name. It is unique for its fierce loyalty to a specific area, and thus its
livelihood can be completely reliant on the existence of sagebrush.
For more information on the the
Sage Grouse, please click on this link.
Today, Pomona-Pitzer remains true to the Division III philosophy that college athletes must be students first. Pomona-Pitzer athletes work hard and excel in their sports, while both coaches and players are aware that each student has come to Pomona
and Pitzer Colleges for a spectrum of learning experiences.
 The centerpiece of the athletic complex is the Liliore Green Rains Center for Sport and Recreation, which opened in 1989 as part of a $16 million facelift of all athletic facilities. The center houses two gymnasiums with
five regulation basketball courts; racquetball, squash, and handball courts; a weight-training facility with Cybex equipment,
elliptical, stair, and bicycle machines, treadmills, and free weights; a large
exercise area for aerobics, yoga, fencing, and martial arts, and classrooms. Adjacent to the Rains Center are 14 all-weather tennis courts; two soccer fields; an all-weather track and field facility,
Fuzz Merritt Football Field, and Alumni Baseball Field. The Haldeman Aquatics Center, has a 50-meter Olympic-size pool with one- and three-meter diving boards, and its own locker and training rooms. These facilities are open to all Pomona students, regardless of their participation in organized athletics, at no additional charge.
Pomona's balance of academics and athletics has served to enhance the success of the Colleges teams. In the past decade, the joint men's and women's athletic teams of Pomona and Pitzer colleges have consistently finished in the top 3 of the combined Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) All-Sports Standings. Over the past three years, four of the 19 teams took first place in the conference, while 16 finished in the top three among the eight SCIAC institutions. In addition, both individuals and teams have a distinguished record of success in national competition in Division III of the NCAA. Of particular note, Pomona
soccer athlete Matt Lee Ashley ‘04 received the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, recognizing their athletic and academic achievements. He is the 17th Pomona-Pitzer student to receive this award.
In 2003, Pomona's football team featured senior Jonathan Samples, who led the team in both overall
yards and scoring. Samples also moved into the Pomona-Pitzer top 10 list, having scored
186 points in his career. Under Coach Roger Caron, team size has increased dramatically and school spirit and interest have followed suit.
Samples set team records for rushing yards in a season (1,260) and finished
second on the all-time list for touchdowns in a season, behind Jim Regan '98. The
2003 squad recorded an impressive 5-3 record, including wins over rival
Occidental and Trinity College, the number three ranked team in the country .
Volleyball team members Katherine Hopkins '05, and Laura Laakso '07 were named to the 2003
All-SCIAC Team, with Laakso being named SCIAC Freshman of the Year.
The men’s soccer team was in the hunt for the conference title until the final week of the 2003 season. Matt Lee-Ashley ’04 and An-Yen Hu ’04 both earned SCIAC First Team honors.
 The women’s soccer team had a strong season under first
year head coach Jen Scanlon, with
Anna Renery '06, and
Lauren Denny ’06 being named to the SCIAC First Team.
Pomona-Pitzer
women have excelled in cross country. At the conference level, they have won
multiple conference titles, and the following SCIAC Championship Meet victories:
Kelly Redfield '92 (1990), Anastasia Finnegan '00 (1998), and Laura Bishop
'03 (2000 and
2001). The women's team competes in the NCAA Division III West Region Meet, and
has consistently placed well there - twice earning NCAA Nationals berths as a
team.
Anastasia Finnegan '00 and Leah Barnes '00 placed 1-2 in the 1998 Conference Championship meet. Finnegan went on to the 1999 National Championships, and Bishop competed in the 2001 National Meet.
The 2001 men's cross country team took second in the Conference Championship meet,
and won the title in 2003 and 2004.
Crosby
Freeman '06 has earned All-American honors twice, and
was twice named SCIAC Runner of the Year in 2003 and 2004.
Freeman finished fifth at Nationals in 2004, the best finish
ever for a Sagehen runner.
In track and field, Kate Hill '00 took second in the hammer to earn All-American honors,
and in 2004, Izzy Smith won the SCIAC title in the 400
hurdles. In 2004, the men's team finished third in the SCIAC,
with Ty Bundgaard representing the school as the SCIAC
Athlete of the Year and as a representative at the 2004 NCAA
Division III National Championships in the high jump
 The women's water polo team won the U.S. Water Polo Collegiate III National Championships in 2003,
and finished in second place in 2004. Ashley Gucinski ’07 was picked as the SCIAC Player of the Year and was also named to the AWPCA All-America First Team.
The men’s water polo team challenged for the conference title in 2003,
with Tim Brown ’04 and Ben Cooper '04 making the All-Conference First Team.
Pomona-Pitzer athletes hold 17 of the 19 SCIAC records in women's swimming.
Men's and Women's Head Coach Penny Dean '77 chairs the Southern California Long Distance Swimming Committee, is the first woman president of the College Swimming Association, and is a member of the NCAA's Swimming Committee. She is perhaps most known as the world record holder for the English Channel swim. In 2002,
five women's swimmers competed at the NCAA meet with Kate Bollinger earning All- American honors in the 200 Fly.
On the Men's side, Swimmer Ben Komer '02 was a two-time All-American and two-time conference Swimmer of the Year (50 free, 100 free).
The men's basketball team has a growing dynasty, having won the SCIAC title in
1989,1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2004 and advancing to the NCAA National
Tournament in each of those years.
In 2003-2004, the Pomona-Pitzer men's basketball team finished in first place in SCIAC and advanced to the
second round of the NCAA playoffs. Mark Erler '04, Tyler Velten '04, and Alex
Lloyd '05 named to the All-SCIAC Team; Erler was given the Ted Ducey Award for
Sportsmanship.
 The Sagehen women, regularly a Division III power, have been SCIAC champions in 15 of the 25 seasons from 1977 to 2004,
including the team’s most recent title in 2002.
Caroline Crocker ’06 was named
to the All-SCIAC Team for the 2003-2004 season.
The Pomona-Pitzer women's tennis team
enjoys a rich tradition of success. Beginning with Darlene Hard's ('61) national
collegiate title in 1958, the team has captured eight NCAA Championships (five
doubles, two singles and one team) and 15 SCIAC Championships. In 1992 the
Sagehen Women swept singles, doubles and team portions of the NCAA Division III
National Championships. Perennially ranked in the top ten nationally, the 2004
team featured SCIAC Player of the Year and All-American Kelli Howard '04, as
well as All-SCIAC members Whitney Henderson '04, and Betsy Mork '04.
The Sagehen men's team won thier first conference title in 40 years in 1989, and
in 1992, earned a fourth place NCAA finish. Recent Pomona-Pitzer Hall of Fame
member Paul Cross (1990) finished the year
ranked number one in both singles and doubles. Ken Su (1999) advanced on to the individual National Championships in 1998.
Most recently, JR Hall (2004) was a four-time first-team All-SCIAC selection and
a singles and doubles All-American, finishing the year ranked 15 in the country
in singles and seven in doubles with partner David Frankel (2004).
Frankel transferred to Pomona-Pitzer in 2002 and was a two-time first-team
All-SCIAC selection and the 2004 SCIAC Player of the Year. He was also a
two-time singles All-American and doubles All-American for the Sagehens; he finished 2004 ranked number nine in the country in singles and
number seven in doubles.
The men's baseball team won back to back SCIAC titles in 2002 and 2003,
compiling a 66-17 overall record and 36-3 league record during that period. Jose Cortez ’03, was
a three-time SCIAC Player of the Year, a four-time All-American, and was drafted
in the 14th round of the Major League Baseball draft, by the Philadelphia
Phillies. Pitcher Adam Gardner '04, was signed by the San Francisco Giants, and
just wrapped up his first season with the
Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.
 The women's softball team recorded its best overall record and best conference finish in 1996.
In 2002, Leanne Stein ’05 earned Second Team All Conference honors.
The 2001 golf team was led by Ben Hochstein ’04 and Scott Pearsall ’05.
Pomona also provides athletic opportunities for students through intramural competition and
physical education activities. Each year, approximately 900 students compete in 18 intramural sports, from badminton, basketball, and beach volleyball to soccer, softball, and inner-tube water polo. The College's physical education program is designed to help student-athletes fulfill their athletic potential and to allow the broadest possible participation by all students.
Club sports are organized by students of the five undergraduate Claremont Colleges. The Colleges field teams in field hockey, lacrosse, and rugby for women; in lacrosse, rugby, and volleyball for men; and coed teams in badminton, cycling, fencing, sailing, skiing, and ultimate Frisbee.
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