Induction Year: 2023

Marlene Harmon Wilcox holds a record that has stood the test of time. On July 16, 1980, in  Philadelphia, at the Alternate Olympic games, “Liberty Bell Classic” held at Franklin Field, Marlene scored 4,333 points to set the Girls’ High School National Pentathlon record. It has never been broken.

From her first national track and field title at the age of 9 to her last at 29. Marlene compiled another enviable standard of excellence that moved her to the international stage and ended with an improbable comeback story.

As a member of the West Valley Eagles track club, Wilcox won the 1973 age group 50-meter hurdles National Title. She would bring home four more championships before entering Thousand Oaks High School. For the Thousand Oaks Lancers, she won four individual CIF section titles. Marlene closed out her high school career with style. At the 1980 CIF State Championships, she won the long jump with a meet record of 20 feet 8 inches; placed second in the 100m hurdles with a time of 13.58 seconds and anchored the 4x400relay to a fifth-place.

The state meet would only be a portion of the 1980 track season for Marlene. She went on to  make appearances on the National and international stage placing third in the Senior AAU National Indoor and Outdoor Pentathlons, Junior Olympic National Champion in the 400 hurdles and long jump, setting the meet record, and earned a spot on the 1980 Olympic Team. Sadly the 1980 Olympic Games were boycotted. In lieu of the Boycotted Olympic Games Harmon represented the USA in the Alternate Olympic competition earning the silver medal. Years later, she and her Olympic teammates were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Jimmy Carter.

In 1983, Marlene won the NCAA Division II heptathlon and was runner-up in the Division I meet. She won the US Olympic Festival Heptathlon in Colorado Springs and represented the USA by earning spots on the World Championship team and Pan American Games team.

Injuries would keep Marlene from the 1984 Olympics and plague her future career, eventually causing her to retire from the sport. However, a chance jog on the track stirred Marlene to return. Finding out she still had collegiate eligibility left, Marlene changed events. For Cal State LA, she won the 1991 NCAA Division II 800-meter title and was a member of the winning 4×400 relay. She would also help her team win relay NCAA titles at the 1992 indoor and outdoor meets equaling 5 NCAA career titles. She would later be inducted into the Cal State LA Hall of Fame.

In 2008 She would return to the world of track and field once again, but this time through the eyes of a Coach. She has facilitated over 2 million dollars in college scholarship opportunities, while mentoring and coaching high school athletes. She has coached in the LAUSD for El Camino Real Charter HS, and in the LVUSD for Calabasas HS. She has now returned home to Conjeo Valley’s Thousand Oaks HS as the head track and field coach, leading the Lancers boys’ team to a CIF Division 2 Section Title and 3 consecutive Marmonte League Titles.

Marlene also serves on the USA Track and Field Coaches Commission, USATF Alumni Board, and holds a USATF Level II Coaching Certification. She served as a USATF National Coach for the 2022 NACAC Championships and was recently named to the 2023 USATF Pan American Games coaching staff.

Marlene’s family is complete with Larry Wilcox, a husband of 37 years, and their 5 children, Ryan, Chad, Wendy, Heidi, and Derek Wilcox.

To average one walk allowed every 18 1/3 innings for a career would be a remarkable achievement in itself.

For first three-time CIF-Southern Section baseball player of the year Rick Stewart, that’s what he averaged for runs allowed – 14 earned runs in 258 innings – for his career at Fillmore High.

With Stewart toeing the rubber, the Flashes won three consecutive section titles.

From 1975-77, Stewart had one command performance after another.

Forty-six years later, his stats still rank among all-time section and state bests with five no-hitters, 432 career strikeouts (1.7 per inning), 0.16 ERA as a junior, 39-2 career won-loss record, and an exceptional 17-0 record to close out his high school career in 1977 – a prevailing best unbeaten season baseball performance in stat history.

Sports Illustrated selected Stewart as the recipient of its “Award of Merit”, Prep Sports Magazine named Stewart to its 1977 All-American baseball team. He was awarded the William N. Nelson Award for Outstanding Achievement in Academics and Athletics.

Drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals, Stewart opted to accept a scholarship at Oral Roberts University,

Stewart was an immediate success, setting freshman program records for innings pitched (91) and wins (10), helping his team secure a 1978 Division I regional championship and a trip to the College World Series.

He was the team leader in ERA (2.52) in 1979 and saves in 1980.

The four-year letterman won 73 percent of his decisions.

Success followed Stewart in his post-playing career as well.

He led Bakersfield Christian to its first girls soccer league title, McKinney Christian Academy to a girls golf state title and Austin College to its first conference baseball title. He has also coached cross country, football and basketball.

Stewart has faithfully served as a teacher, coach and youth pastor and volunteered with numerous community organizations.

He and his wife of 43 years Mary Martha, reside in McKinney, Texas. Their daughter Christa, husband Taylor and child Palmer reside nearby in Dallas.

Cal State Northridge paid the utmost respect to 2012 NCAA Division I batting champion Sam Fischer.

Fischer was walked five times in one game, setting a Pacific Coast Softball Conference record.

All the Loyola Marymount shortstop did that season was hit for a .492 batting average, reach  base in 52 of 53 games, record 14 doubles and bettered the PCSC record with 23 home runs.

The first three-time all-PCSC first team selection in school history, Fischer became the program’s first All-American in 2012.

By the time she finished, Fischer had set program career records for home runs, RBIs, total bases, batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, doubles and walks.

Among her career records were 65 home runs, 172 RBIs, 184 runs scored and 127 walks.

The school retired her jersey number and inducted Fischer into its Hall of Fame.

Before her days at LMU, Fischer made her mark with the Simi Valley High Pioneers.

A three-time all-Marmonte League selection, Fischer was the 2008 Ventura County Player of the Year and high school All-American.

Fischer played with Team USA from 2012 until 2016, earning gold medals in World Cup and World Championship competitions.

Professionally, Fischer has worn uniforms of the Akron Racers, Scrap Yard Dawgs and California Commotion. She spent two seasons in the Japanese Pro League. Fischer currently plays in Athletes Unlimited League, hitting the league’s first home run, and serves as chairperson of the Softball Player Executive Committee.

Fischer was an assistant coach at Cal Lutheran University, provided hitting lessons in Simi Valley for years and has worked at camps and clinics nationwide.

Hobbies include reading and crossfit workouts.

She and husband Kevin Cooke live in Queen Creek, Arizona.

Before becoming an All-American at UCLA, Michael Enfield was one of the most decorated youth boys soccer players in Ventura County history.

An All-CIF Southern Section selection at Ventura High, Enfield closed out a brilliant prep career as the Parade Magazine and SchoolSports.com national player of the year.

So well known nationally for his feats in club soccer, Enfield’s selection by Parade Magazine was made before his high school season had ended.

Enfield was named as the MVP of the ODP Club South national championship and the leading scorer for the U.S. Under-18 national team that won the International Tournament of Lisbon in Portugal.

At UCLA, Enfield had 10 game-winning goals in his four-year career. He was the PAC-10 scoring leader as a senior with 13 goals and 30 points on his way to being selected as a first-team NSCAA All-American. His collegiate career was capped with UCLA winning the Division I national championship.

In the second round Bruins’ championship tournament match against Loyola Marymount, Enfield had a goal and an assist.

Enfield was 15th overall draft pick in the MLS Super Draft by the Los Angeles Galaxy. In his two seasons, the Galaxy won the 2005 MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup title and were the 2006 U.S. Open Cup runner-up.

From 2007-09, Enfield was a member of the Sydney Football Club. Injuries to his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments sidelined him in September of 2007.

Enfield had a stint with the Ventura County Fusion of the USL Premier League.

He played for the U.S. National Beach soccer team that won the 2013 Concacaf Tournament of Champions and played in the FiFA Beach Soccer World Cup.

Since retiring as a professional player, Enfield has coached youth soccer for Conejo Valley Unified based in Thousand Oaks.

In his free time, Enfield is an avid surfer.

He and his wife are the parents of Decian, Pepper and Shane.

Derry Eads had a record career as the high school sports editor for the Ventura County Star.

Maintaining records, that is.

Inheriting county prep records for various sports created by retired high school sports editor Jim Parker, Eads has updated single game, season and career performance lists for 25 years, including statistics for more than 12 years since retiring in 2011.

Eads’ assignments included weekly columns. notebooks, game coverage, high school and college schedules and statistical leaders during various sports seasons.

He has covered more than a dozen state cross country and track and field championships as well as section finals in football, softball and soccer.

The CIF-Southern Section presented Eads with a Victory with Honor media award.

His contributions to the Star did not end with his final fulltime employment.

After retiring, Eads was a commentator for the paper’s streaming of online high school football games for three years. He regularly contributed to coverage of various sports events throughout the year.

Eads has been the secretary of the Ventura County Sports Hall of Fame executive committee since 2012.

Before arriving in Ventura County, he was a sports writer for the El Paso Herald-Post. For the Herald-Post, Eads primarily covered UTEP sports. He also wrote weekly golf and bowling columns and wrote about the Sun Bowl, tennis and swimming.

Among his honors were an 1985 Headliner Award of Texas and special award from the Texas Women’s Bowling Association.

He was elected to the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame and the El Paso Bowling Hall of Fame.

Eads, his wife Yvonne and stepdaughter Sarah live in Port Hueneme.