2019 Rancho Cordova Sports Hall of Fame

This outstanding Lancer football club was the first team in the Sac-Joaquin Section to go 14-0, sweeping up accolades along the way. The team was coached by Max Miller and led on the field by quarterback Section Player of the YearTroy Taylor. Following a successful high school coaching career Taylor is currently head football coach at Sacramento State University. During a heady season in 1985, the team was ranked #1 in the northern California, #2 in the state and #7 in the United States, and is still listed as #9 on CalHiSports.com’s all time greatest football teams in the Sac-Joaquin Section.

Williams went from high school standout to UC Davis, where his football accomplishments earned him a spot in the Cal Aggies Hall of Fame. He went on to be drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the 1970 NFL Draft, making him the first Lancer to play professional football. Williams played with the Chargers in 1970 and 1971. 

An all-around athlete who shined in both football and wrestling, Champa gathered an armload of Cordova High sports honors before heading to college and medical school. He served as a surgeon in the U.S. Navy before settling in Jackson, WY where he concentrated on trauma and sports medicine, taking pride in restoring the shoulders of wrestlers who went on to win state championships.

Nyman was an outstanding starter in both baseball and basketball for the Cordova Lancers during the early 1970s. The brother of former Major Leaguer Nyls Nyman (Cordova ’72), Chris Nyman had a MLB career of his own, signed by the Chicago White Sox, where he played for two seasons. He played additional seasons in Triple-A ball, as well as professional baseball in Japan. 

A Cordova High two-sport athlete in basketball and baseball, Finch’s performances as a pitcher earned him a second round draft pick by the Texas Rangers. He spent 11 years in professional baseball, completing his education and earning a law degree in the off season, proving himself to be a standout both on and off the field.

A member of the magical 1972 Lancer baseball team, Ondina racked up an impressive personal record before making baseball history with teammate Jerry Manuel (Cordova ’72) in June 1972. Ondina was the 12th player taken in Major League Baseball’s amateur draft (by the Chicago White Sox), and Manuel was selected 20th (by the Detroit Tigers). The events marked the first time ever two players from the same school were taken in the first round, a record that stood for 20 years. Ondina played eight years in the Minors before entering sports administration and business. 

Part of the 2005 Cordova High 4x100 relay team which competed in the State Championships, Robinson went on to running fame at Grambling State, where he was a 2009 Indoor and 2010 Outdoor Champion. With many accomplishments in the Southwest Athletic Conference, Robinson went on to become an award-winner in the sport of body building. 

A Cordova High wrestler who piled up 152 wins in three years, Martinez was a 1982 state qualifier in a competitive year. Martinez’ impressive record in both competition and coaching spans more than 30 years and includes being a state qualifier as a competitor in both high school and at Sacramento City College. His impressive coaching career includes 16 state champions; his expertise in the sport was recognized during executive service for the USA Wrestling organization, 20 years as a California Wrestling Board member and more.

A multi-sport athlete, record-setting All-Metro swimmer and Outstanding Female Athlete at Cordova High in the 1980s, Roe was recruited to play field hockey by Stanford and Dartmouth, but instead chose UCLA where she walked onto the Bruins

swim team and competed on the collegiate level. 

Hilton fell in love with baseball as a child in Michigan where he played high school ball well enough to get an invitation for a tryout with the Detroit Tigers. He played one year of college ball at Sonoma State, and coached baseball at Mills Jr. High and Cordova High. But Hilton distinguished himself as a player in Men’s Senior Baseball, playing the game into his 80s. He was inducted into the Sacramento Men’s Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009, accumulating nine championship rings from the Phoenix World Series and one from the Men’s Senior Baseball League Fall Classic.

Honored in the Coaching category, Doherty coached wrestling at Mitchell Middle School and Cordova High, and was a varsity coach at Cordova during the football dynasty years of the 1970s. Doherty went on to become head football coach at Folsom in 1982 and later served as the school’s athletic director where he was an architect of Folsom’s rise to statewide and national football and sports dominance

An outstanding physical education educator and coach during a career which spanned 30 years, Reed was a Cordova High basketball coach, leading the 1964 varsity to an undefeated season as Golden Empire League champs. During a 30-year tenure at Folsom Cordova, Reed also served as principal of Mitchell Middle School and track coach at Cordova High. 

Honored in the “Heart of a Champion” category, this father and son duo have left their imprint on youth sports in Rancho Cordova. Both now deceased, the elder Ferreirae, a teacher at White Rock and Cordova Lane Elementary Schools, was devoted to arranging elementary school track and other sports opportunities for children. He was a softball coach at Mills Jr. High devoting extraordinary support to softball athletes. Son Bill followed in his father’s footsteps as an elementary school teacher and softball coach for youth leagues and as coach for the Sacramento City College women’s softball team. Together, the Ferreiraes opened the door of opportunity to countless Rancho Cordova athletes through exhaustive grassroots fundraisers and activities, including a robust fireworks stand which was a Fourth of July pillar on Coloma Road for years.