Carpinteria High readies to honor new Hall of Fame class

Carpinteria-Warriors-LogoThe five new inductees to Carpinteria High School’s Athletic Hall of Fame will be honored at halftime of this Friday’s football game against Oak Park. A banquet the following day will be held at the Carpinteria Boys & Girls Club.

There are currently 39 members in?Carpinteria High’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

The banquet will also serve as an opportunity to honor Carpinteria High School’s 100th year. The athletic department will introduce the ?Carpinteria High School Athletics Centennial Fund,? established with the goal of raising $100,000 and eventually creating an endowment to help sustain the quality level of athletic programs that CHS currently offers to 600 participants in 18 sports.

2013 INDUCTEES


Kevin Purcell's yearbook photo from 1974

Kevin Purcell’s yearbook photo from 1974

Kevin Purcell (1970-1974) – Kevin moved to Carpinteria in 1966 and was a three-year varsity letterman on the Warrior basketball team from 1972-74. Teaming with fellow Hall of Fame inductee Peter Ruiz, the duo led the Warriors to back-to-back Tri-Valley League Championships in 1973 and 1974, two of the most successful seasons in Carpinteria Basketball history. Purcell led the Warriors and the Tri-Valley League in scoring for the 1972-73 season and was voted Co-Most Valuable Player for the Warriors, along with Ruiz. He was also named TVL Player of the Year that season. The Warriors advanced to the CIF Quarterfinals in 1973, with Purcell picking up All-CIF honors as well as being selected to the All Southern-California High School Basketball Division ?A? First Team.

During his senior season, Purcell captained the CHS basketball squad and led the team in scoring, rebounding and free throw percentage. He set the school single season scoring record with 474 points and was again voted MVP for the Warriors. Purcell was named to the Tri-Valley League and All-CIF squads and was awarded the honor of Outstanding Basketball Player in Santa Barbara County by the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table for the 1973-74 season and was again named to the All Southern-California High School Basketball Division ?A? First Team.

In addition to leading the Warriors on the court, Purcell served as Freshman and Sophomore Class President and was ASB President during the 1973-74 school year. He went on to graduate from the University of the Pacific in 1978, having played on the UOP Basketball team for two seasons.

Purcell attended the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and is now a Doctor of Chiropractic in private practice in San Diego. In addition to coaching Ironman triathletes, including more than 40 qualifiers for the Ironman World Championships, Purcell has personally completed in 20 Ironman triathlons. He has been married to his wife Laurie for 27 years and has two children, Kelly and Colleen.

Peter Ruiz

Peter Ruiz

Peter Ruiz (1970-1974) – A native Carpinterian, Peter was half of the dynamic duo that led the Warriors to two consecutive Tri-Valley League Championships. Under the leadership of Coach Jim Bashore, Ruiz and fellow Hall of Fame inductee Kevin Purcell proved the Warriors were a force to be reckoned with, advancing to the CIF Quarterfinals in 1973 and again making the playoffs in 1974.

Ruiz was a three-year varsity letterman on the Basketball squad, earning All Tri-Valley League honors as a sophomore, junior and senior. He was also named to the All CIF and All Southern-California High School Basketball Teams as a junior and senior.

The 1973 season was a special one for both Ruiz and Purcell, as the pair was voted Warrior Co-MVPs as juniors. Ruiz averaged 16.4 points per game and led the team with 220 rebounds, earning First Team All Tri-Valley League honors. The Warriors were TVL champions that season as well.

As a senior, Ruiz was named to the all-Tourney team of the Holiday Cage Classic, of which the Warriors took home the crown, and was again named to the Tri-Valley League First Team. The Warriors repeated as TVL champs and once again advanced to the CIF playoffs.

Ruiz finished his basketball career as the scoring leader for the Warriors, compiling an impressive 974 points and averaging more than 14 points per game during his three year varsity tenure.

After graduating from Carpinteria High School, Ruiz attended Santa Barbara City College. He has one daughter, Isabel, and resides in San Diego.

DeeAndra Pilkington

DeeAndra Pilkington

DeeAndra Pilkington McGuff (1982-1986) – The youngest of six children, DeeAndra earned four Varsity letters in softball and helped guide the Warriors to their first Tri-Valley League Championship in the sport and a CIF Quarterfinal appearance in 1985. That season was a break-out year for the Warriors and one that wouldn?t be matched for more than two and a half decades.

Pilkington began pitching in relief at the end of her freshman season, and by her sophomore year, proved to be the team?s starter, helping the Warriors to a second place finish in the TVL and earning second team All-TVL honors.

As a junior, Pilkington compiled a 16-6 record, pitching 140 of 149 innings for the Warriors and recording 155 strikeouts en route to the TVL crown. She was named MVP of the Tri-Valley league for the ?85 season and was voted Most Valuable Player by her teammates as well. Despite the team?s third place finish in league in 1986, Pilkington was once again named MVP of the Tri-Valley League.

Pilkington earned a full scholarship to California Lutheran University where she earned First Team All American honors, set school records in more than 10 categories and helped the Regals reach the NAIA Division II National Tournament in 1989. As a pitcher for Cal Lu, she played in 95 games, including 71 complete games, pitched 576.2 innings and recorded 62 wins, 27 of which were shutouts. She amassed 308 strikeouts and had an earned run average of 1.04. Pilkington was also a standout at the plate, with 194 hits, a career batting average of .359, 110 runs and 57 stolen bases. She was inducted into the Cal Lu Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005 and at that time held the school record of 188 games played and 600 at bats.

A 1990 graduate of Cal Lutheran, Pilkington now works as a sales professional in the technology industry, in addition to being a private fast-pitch softball instructor. She is also the pitching instructor for the Edison High School Varsity and JV Softball teams. She and her husband Doug McGuff reside in Huntington Beach with their three children, Tamara, Ashlynn and Tristan.

Micheline Sheaffer

Micheline Sheaffer

Micheline Sheaffer White (1984-1988) – A three sport athlete for CHS, Micheline earned eight varsity letters during her high school career ? four in Track & Field, three in Volleyball and one in Basketball. She was named the MVP of the Warriors Volleyball team and earned All Tri-Valley League honors in 1986 and 1987, but it was in Track & Field where Sheaffer truly made her mark.

Sheaffer set the school record in the discus with a throw of 142?2? as a junior, and also set Tri-Valley League records in the shot put (38?5?) and discus (137?2?), all records she still holds today, 26 years later. She was the Easter Relays discus champion in 1988, as well as the Tri-Valley League and CIF Champion in the discus in 1988. She also held the CIF record in the discus until 2004. Named the CHS Track & Field MVP both her junior and senior years, Sheaffer was also the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table High School Athlete of the Year in Girls? Track & Field in 1988.

Sheaffer continued her career at the University of California at Santa Barbara, earning team MVP honors in 1990, 1991 and 1992. She held the school record in the discus (162?9?) from 1991 to 2004 and notched an Easter Relays Stadium record (162?6?) in 1991. In the Big West conference, Sheaffer landed second in 1991 and third in both 1990 and 1992 in the discus, and she provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships in 1991 and 1992. Sheaffer was again named the SBART Athlete of the Year in Track & Field in 1991 and 1992, this time in the college division.

She graduated from UCSB, majoring in history and geography, and went on to earn her teaching credential from Cal State Northridge. Sheaffer returned to Carpinteria High School to coach Track & Field from 1993-96, where she helped develop another CIF champion female thrower, Larissa Godkin Feramisco.

Married to Steve White, Sheaffer taught elementary school in California, Florida and Hawaii, before taking time off to have children. She once again lives in Carpinteria with her husband, son Joseph and daughter Leanna.

Coley Candaele

Coley Candaele

Coley Candaele (1986-1990) – A standout athlete for Carpinteria High School, Coley Candaele excelled in both football and track, earning seven varsity letters ? three in Football and four in Track & Field. He was named the CIF Athlete of the Year in 1990 and has the unique experience of leading the Warrior Football team to four CIF Championships and two undefeated seasons, both as a player and a coach.

On the gridiron, Candaele started on offense and defense for the Warriors, but put his name in the record books as the quarterback with most points scored (222) and most career passing yards (4,620). He led the Warriors to three consecutive Tri-Valley League and CIF Championships in 1987, 1988 and 1989, including an undefeated 14-0 season in 1987. Candaele earned All Tri-Valley League honors in 1987, 1988 and 1989, and was named the league MVP in both 1988 and 1989. He was also named CIF Player of the Year in 1988 and was part of the All-CIF teams in both 1988 and 1989.

Candaele excelled even further on the track, setting multiple school, league and CIF records throughout his career and leading the Warrior Track & Field team to Tri-Valley League titles in 1988, 1989 and 1990. Candaele was the Santa Barbara County Champion in both the 800M and 1600M in 1998 and 1989. He compiled six individual CIF Championship titles, winning both the 800M and 1600M in 1988, 1989 and 1990, and was the anchor on the Warriors CIF Champion 4×400 relay team in 1990. He established school records in the 400M, 800M and 1600M, as well as the CIF Division IV records in the 800M and 1600M. Candaele placed third at the State Championships in the 1600M in 1988, second in 1989 and finally became the State Champion in 1990 with a national leading time of 4:06.26.

Candaele earned a full Track & Field/Cross-Country scholarship to the University of Oregon, competing there for two seasons. He finished his collegiate career at Cal-Poly San Louis Obispo running track and cross-country and earning All-American honors twice in the 1500M.

After graduating from Cal Poly, Candaele spent four seasons at Covina High School before returning to Carpinteria High as Head Football Coach and assistant Track & Field Coach in 1997. Under his leadership, the Warrior Football team compiled a record of 51-24-2, finishing as CIF runner-up in 1998 and culminating in another perfect 14-0 season and CIF Championship in 2002.

Candaele left CHS at the end of the 2003 school year to become the Head Football and Head Track & Field Coach at the then new Vista Murrieta High School. His Football and Track & Field teams have achieved great success under his leadership. With Candaele at the helm, Vista Murrieta has been to the CIF Inland Conference Football Championship game the last four years, winning the championship in 2011 and finishing as runner-up in 2009, 2010 and 2012. The Track & Field teams have won the Division 1 CIF crown for four consecutive years (2010-2013). The Boys Track Club was also the Nike National Boys Track & Field Champions in 2010 and finished second in 2011.

Candaele and his wife Karen live in Murrieta with their two daughters, Peyton and Devyn.