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Santa Clara University Hall of Famer Ric Foley of Los Gatos.
Foley wins spot in Bronco Hall
Seven SCU stars join Hall of Fame
By Dick Sparrer
It's been more than 20 years since Ric Foley starred on the baseball diamond at Santa Clara University. But it hasn't been so long that the Broncos don't remember or appreciate his talents.
Foley was one of seven outstanding Santa Clara athletes to win induction into the Santa Clara University Athletic Hall of Fame during ceremonies hosted by the school's Alumni Association on June 17.
Foley, a member of the class of 1978, played both baseball and football at Santa Clara, and was inducted along with basketball players Elden Eckman, class of '35, and James Russi, class of '60; special nominee A.P. "Butch" Hamann Jr., class of '70; football star Rich Martig, class of '84; women's basketball sensation Suzanne (Meckenstock) Seandel, class of '86; and women's soccer standout Jennifer (Symons) Meek, class of '89.
Foley, Martig, Meckenstock and Symons share a common thread as they move into Santa Clara's hallowed Hall--all four were outstanding high school athletes in the area.
Foley was an All-Central Coast Section pick in both football and baseball as an outstanding athlete at Leigh High School from 1971 to 1974.
Martig starred on the football field for Bellarmine in the late 1970s before moving on to Santa Clara.
Meckenstock was a superstar on the basketball floor for Los Gatos in the 1980s. She led the vaunted Gatos "Orange Crush" to the Northern California championship and was named to the All-Central Coast Section team.
Symons, like Meckenstock, was a girls sports star at Los Gatos before joining the Broncos. She was an all-CCS soccer player for the Wildcats before starring on the soccer field at Santa Clara.
The seven Santa Clara Athletic Hall of Fame inductees were recognized with a dinner and special ceremonies held in Benson Memorial Center on the campus.
Martig, like Foley before him, played for the South squad in the Santa Clara County All-Star football game as a graduating high school senior. Foley played in the first game in 1974, and Martig played in 1980.
The game, now the Charlie Wedemeyer All-Star Football Game, will celebrate its 25th anniversary when it is played on July 23 at San Jose State University's Spartan Stadium.
Foley went on to play both football and baseball at Santa Clara, but he gave up football after two years to concentrate on baseball. He left the school's tight end job in the capable hands of Doug Cosbie, who went on to become an All-Pro with the Dallas Cowboys. Cosbie, a graduate of St. Francis, also played in that 1974 summer high school all-star game.
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Saratoga, California Since 1975
