Pepperdine Hall Of Honor Inductees

PEPPERDINE HALL OF HONOR INDUCTEES

2024 - Dwayne Polee, Pepperdine 
Dwayne Polee transferred to Pepperdine for his final three seasons of college basketball after starting at UNLV. Polee was named the WCC Player of the Year in 1985 and 1986, along with two-time All-WCC First-Team honors. In addition to the Conference recognition, he garnered multiple All-America honors in 1986 and was named to the NABC All-District team in both 1985 and 1986. Polee's collegiate career was topped off with a pair of WCC regular-season titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. Polee was a third-round selection (54th pick overall) in the 1986 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. He also played professionally for the Colima Lemaneros in Mexico from 1989-91 and was a member of the U.S. traveling team in Europe from 1987-89. Polee later went on to serve as the Director of Player Development at San Francisco. 

2023 - Julie Evans Castillo, Pepperdine University
Julie Evans Castillo helped put WCC women’s volleyball on the map when the league began sponsoring the sport in 1985. Prior to that, Evans helped the Waves to a 24-win campaign, an NCAA Tournament appearance and a No. 17 final national ranking in 1984. The dominance continued as Evans led Pepperdine to the NCAAs in 1986 and 1987, WCC titles in 1985 and 1987 after going undefeated in both of those seasons, and two top-19 national rankings. Individually, Evans was a two-time WCC Player of the Year (1985, 1987), three-time first-team all-WCC pick (1985-87) and became the fourth All-American (second player) in school history (1987). She finished her career ranked first in career kills, kills per set, services aces, service aces per set, points and points per set before joining the Pepperdine coaching staff as a student assistant in 1988, helping the Waves win the WCC and reach the NCAA Tournament.

2020 - Nina Matthies, Pepperdine University
Nearly 600 career indoor wins plus 20 NCAA Tournament appearances, in addition to beach national championships in both 2012 and 2014, cemented Nina Matthies’ place as one of the most accomplished volleyball coaches of all time. Matthies took over as the Pepperdine women’s volleyball head coach in the fall of 1983. In 31 seasons, she posted a career record of 590-343 (.632) before stepping down to focus on the beach program after the 2013 season. Pepperdine reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament twice (2002 and 2011) while making it to a regional semifinal on five other occasions under Matthies. She led the Waves to a season-ending top-25 AVCA ranking 14 times, with highs of sixth in 2002, 2003 and 2011. The West Coast Conference began sponsoring women’s volleyball in 1985, two years after Matthies arrived, so her numbers are no surprise: a remarkable conference record of 320-90 (.780), a pair of conference win streaks that went 40-plus matches, 11 league championships (nine of them undefeated) and 10 WCC Coach of the Year awards. Matthies was also a leading proponent of collegiate sand volleyball, and she saw that goal realized when schools began play during the spring of 2012 as an NCAA emerging sport. The Waves were dominant early, as they went undefeated and captured the inaugural AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Championship in 2012. They nearly repeated the feat in 2013 before settling for second place, but won their second title in 2014. Matthies earned the AVCA’s National Coach of the Year award in 2013, the first time it had been given. Matthies then ushered the sport into the NCAA Championships era, taking Pepperdine to each of the first three events, which included a runner-up result in 2017. The Waves also won the first three WCC Championships ever contested and she was named WCC Coach of the Year after each one. Matthies retired after the 2018 season with a 137-23 (.856) record in seven seasons on the beach. Pepperdine’s success on the beach wasn’t surprising considering Matthies’ history in the sport. After she excelled in the indoor game at UCLA (winning two AIAW national championships), with the U.S. National Team (1971 Pan American Games) and professionally (International Volleyball Association and Women’s Professional League), Matthies became one of the all-time greats outdoors. In 139 career starts on the beach, she won 43 titles and earned 93 podium finishes. Seven of those titles came at the Manhattan Beach Open, and she’s prominently featured at the legendary Manhattan Beach Volleyball Walk of Fame. She’s been inducted into the Beach Volleyball Hall of Fame. Volleyball Magazine named Matthies as one of the “Most Influential People in the First 100 Years of Volleyball.” In 2004, she was named to the 75th Anniversary All-Era Team by USA Volleyball. Matthies was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013, the AVCA Hall of Fame in 2015 and the SoCal Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2018.

2019 - Gualberto Escudero, Pepperdine University
Gualberto Escudero arrived at Pepperdine’s old South Los Angeles campus as a freshman in the fall of 1968. He never left the school, and for 37 seasons he fashioned one of the most prolific coaching careers in NCAA women’s tennis history. Starting in 1978 and until his retirement after the 2014 season, Escudero had a career record of 651-334 (.661). It’s believed that his win total ranked second all-time among women’s tennis coaches at that point. Escudero led the Waves to the NCAA postseason on 31 occasions, including each of his final 27 seasons. Thirty-two of his 37 teams posted winning records, and his squads finished with a top 10 national ranking seven times. The Waves dominated the West Coast Conference during his tenure, winning either the regular-season or tournament title in 25 of 29 years (including 14 straight from 1988-2001). The Waves won all three tournament titles and 24 of the 29 regular-season titles. Escudero received numerous individual accolades. He was selected as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s District VIII Coach of the Year in 1991 and 1992, the ITA West Region Coach of the Year in 2006 and the WCC Coach of the Year in 1999, 2000, 2006 and 2012. He consistently attracted talented student-athletes to Malibu. Pepperdine women’s tennis players were named All-Americans 31 times, under his leadership while there were 42 singles players and 24 doubles teams that earned All-WCC first team honors. Also, his players earned spots on the WCC All-Academic list 43 times. Escudero was named head coach prior to the 1977-78 season. The Waves competed at the AIAW Championships in both 1979 and 1980 (and was ranked first in the AIAW at one point during the 1980 season). Pepperdine competed at the first-ever NCAA Tournament back in 1982, and made four straight first-round appearances when there were just 16 teams. The Waves earned their first NCAA Tournament victory in 1988, then had a run of three straight years in the quarterfinals between 1989-91. The Waves again made it into the quarterfinals in 1994. Escudero moved to the United States from Bolivia when he was 10 years old. After graduating from Hollywood High School, he was a standout player for the Waves from 1969 to 1972. He was a finalist in the 1969 WCAC singles tournament while winning the doubles title with John Lovelace, and helped the Waves win two conference team titles. He earned a degree in physical education from Pepperdine in 1972. After graduating, Escudero stayed on campus by teaching tennis courses for both the University and with the Crest Associates, and serving as an assistant coach with both the men’s and women’s teams. And even after his retirement from college coaching, he’s remained on campus stringing racquets and offering lessons.

2018 - Randy Wolf, Pepperdine University
Randy Wolf is among the best pitchers in Pepperdine baseball history and the left-hander also had one of the longest Major League careers by anyone that has worn the Waves' uniform. After an outstanding prep career at El Camino Real High School in Woodland Hills, Calif., where he was named Player of the Year by the Los Angeles Times, Wolf was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 25th round of the 1994 MLB Draft. However, he turned them down and enrolled at Pepperdine. Over his three seasons in Malibu, he established himself among the nation's best pitchers. He went 25-8 overall and posted a 1.97 earned-run average with 328 strikeouts in 315.0 innings pitched. On Pepperdine's all-time lists, he finished his career first in strikeouts and shutouts (records he still holds), second in ERA, fifth in innings pitched (now ninth) and seventh in wins (now 10th). In 1995, Wolf was named a Freshman All-American by both Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball, as well as the Freshman of the Year in the WCC. In 1997, he was awarded All-American honors by three publications and was the WCC's Pitcher of the Year. All three seasons, he was selected to the All-WCC first team. He recorded the fifth and most recent no-hitter in Pepperdine history on March 15, 1996, against Gonzaga. Wolf's Pepperdine teams posted a cumulative record of 103-63-1, claimed the 1995 WCC championship and advanced to the 1995 NCAA West Regional. During his time at Pepperdine, he pitched for the U.S. National Team in 1995 and 1996 and posted a 6-0 record. He was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the second round of the 1997 MLB Draft, and made his Major League debut two years later with a victory over the Toronto Blue Jays. Wolf spent 16 seasons in the Majors between 1999 and 2015 and pitched for the Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles, Miami Marlins and Detroit Tigers. He had a career win-loss record of 133-125. Wolf made the National League All-Star Team in 2003 while pitching for the Phillies in a season where he led all NL left-handers in wins (16) and strikeouts (177). He made the postseason with the Dodgers in 2009 and Brewers in 2011. In 2006, he was selected to the WCC's 40th Anniversary Team. He was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010.

2017 - William "Bird" Averitt, Pepperdine University
William "Bird" Averitt enjoyed the two greatest seasons in Pepperdine men's basketball history, as he averaged 28.9 points as a sophomore and then led the NCAA in scoring with 33.9 points per game as a junior. He still holds the WCC records for points in a game and scoring average for both a season and career. During his first season of 1970-71 he was unable to play with the varsity due to the NCAA rule of freshmen being ineligible at the time. But his legend began when he scored 43 and 44 points in games against UCLA during freshman games. Averitt then broke Pepperdine's season scoring record as a sophomore and again as a junior. His single-game best of 57 points vs. Nevada in 1973 set a school record, one of 11 times he scored at least 40 points. Averitt scored in double-figures in all 49 of his games in a Pepperdine uniform. His career scoring average of 31.5 points per game is nearly 13 points more than the second-ranked Wave. He scored a remarkable 1,541 points in just two seasons, which was a school record that has since been broken. He earned All-American honorable mention honors from both the Associated Press and UPI after his junior year, and was the 1973 WCC Player of the Year. Averitt turned professional after his junior season, and though he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1973 NBA Draft, he instead signed with the San Antonio Spurs of the ABA. He moved on to the Kentucky Colonels, where he won the ABA championship in 1974-75 playing alongside the likes of Artis Gilmore and Dan Issel and being coached by Hubie Brown. Averitt averaged double-figures in points in each of his three ABA seasons, including a career-best 17.9 with the Colonels in 1975-76. When Kentucky was disbanded as part of the ABA-NBA merger, he played two seasons in the NBA with the Buffalo Braves and the New Jersey Nets.

2016 - Maureen Formico-Caloiaro, Pepperdine University
Thirty years after gracing Firestone Fieldhouse, Maureen Formico-Caloiaro is still the greatest scorer in Pepperdine women's basketball history as well as being one of just three Waves to earn All-American status.The 6-foot forward set a school record for both the boys' and girls' programs at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., by scoring more than 1,800 career points. She bettered that at Pepperdine, scoring a program-record 2,190 points in 114 career games, while averaging a double-double for her career with 19.2 points and 10.4 rebounds. After a strong freshman season in 1982-83, Caloiaro broke out as a sophomore and averaged team highs of 18.7 points and 10.3 rebounds. As a junior she followed with best offensive season in Pepperdine history despite a slow start due to an offseason injury. Once recovered, the Waves' fortunes improved. The team won nine of its final 14 games and Caloiaro set school single-season records with 713 points and a 24.6 scoring average (records that still stand), and ranked ninth in the nation in scoring. Caloiaro scored a career-high 43 points against U.S. International. She also averaged 13.2 rebounds, placing third on the Waves' records list and good for 12th in the nation. She set a school-single game record by grabbing 33 rebounds against Loyola Marymount. For her efforts, Caloiaro was awarded All-American status by the publication Fastbreak, and she would repeat that honor with another tremendous season as a senior. The West Coast Conference began to sponsor women's basketball in 1985-86, and Caloiaro led the league in its first season in both scoring (22.9) and rebounding (11.6) en route to All-WCC first team honors. Her statistics ranked 19th and 21st in the nation, respectively. After graduating from Pepperdine in 1986 with a degree in physical education, Caloiaro was drafted into a professional league in the U.S., and then went to Spain to play overseas a year later. She has worked in the insurance industry ever since, and also served as an assistant girls' basketball coach at Archbishop Mitty for eight years. Caloiaro's family tree is filled with athletes of note. Her father, Marte Formico, was a star at Santa Clara in football and track. Her sister, Margie, was a two-time MVP in volleyball at Santa Clara. Her niece (and Margie's daughter) is two-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh. Caloiaro and her husband Dominik, who also played basketball, live in Saratoga, Calif. Their oldest three children played college sports at San Francisco (Angelo/basketball, who currently plays in Spain; Vincenzo/soccer; and Joan/volleyball, who later transferred, played at and graduated from Cal). Their youngest child, Gino, is a freshman at Foothill College.

2015 - Dane Suttle, Pepperdine University
For more than 30 years, one man's name - Dane Suttle -- has stood atop the list that marks the all-time scoring leaders in Pepperdine men's basketball history. Suttle, a 6-foot-3 guard, came to Pepperdine as a freshman in 1979-80 after earning All-City honors at Fremont High School in Los Angeles. Four years later, Suttle finished up as the school's all-time leader in points, field goals made, assists, steals and games played. While most of those records have been broken in the decades since, Suttle still holds the scoring mark with a total of 1,701 points. After averaging 23.4 points per game as a senior in 1982-83 - the third-best average in school single-season history and a figure that ranked him 14th nationally - Suttle was named All-American honorable mention by the Associated Press and shared the West Coast Conference's Player of the Year award. Suttle also averaged 16.8 points as a junior, leading to All-WCC first team honors, and 15.1 as a sophomore. Only five players in Pepperdine history have scored at least 40 points in a game, and Suttle accomplished the feat when he poured in 41 points in a 101-92 victory at rival LMU during his senior year. Over his four seasons playing for head coach Jim Harrick, the Waves went 75-39 (.658), won at least a share of three WCC regular-season titles and advanced to the postseason three times. Pepperdine appeared in the NIT his freshman year and in the NCAA Tournament when he was a junior and senior. Suttle was taken by the Kansas City Kings in the seventh round of the 1983 NBA Draft, and he would play two seasons for the Kings. In his best-ever game he scored 26 points at Detroit during his rookie campaign. For his career he averaged 5.6 points in 46 games. Suttle, who returned to Pepperdine to earn his bachelor's degree in physical education in 1994, has three children: Cache, Audom and Dane Jr. (the last of which was a four-year letter-winner at Pepperdine who graduated in 2012).

2014 - Mike Scott, Pepperdine University
Mike Scott turned in a decorated three-year career (1974-76) at Pepperdine. The righthander made an immediate impact for the Waves, capturing WCC Freshman of the Year honors in 1974. A three-time All-WCC selection, Scott departed the Malibu campus as Pepperdine's career record-holder for wins (26), strikeouts (232) and games started (42). Scott still ranks fourth in career ERA (2.10) and tossed a perfect game against Cal Lutheran on Feb. 17, 1976. During his collegiate career, Pepperdine won three consecutive WCC titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament each year. Scott was a 1975 District VIII selection. Named to the WCC's 50 Greatest Student-Athletes list in 2001, Scott was also named to the WCC/Rawlings 40th Anniversary Baseball Team. After being selected by the New York Mets in the second round of the 1976 Major League Draft, Scott enjoyed a remarkable professional career and played 13 years in the majors with the New York Mets (1979-82) and the Houston Astros (1983-91). One of just a handful of pitchers to ever record a no-hitter and 300 strikeouts in the same season, Scott was a three-time All-Star and started for the National League in the 1987 Midsummer Classic. Scott captured the 1986 National League Cy Young Award after posting an 18-10 record with a 2.22 ERA to go along with a league-leading 306 strikeouts. On September 26 the Santa Monica native pitched a 2-0 no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants in the Astrodome to clinch the N.L. West division title. The Astros fell to the Mets, the eventual World Series Champions, but Scott was so dominant in his starts in game one and four that he was named the 1986 NLCS MVP - the first ever selected from the losing team. As a 20-game winner in 1989, Scott finished second in the Cy Young voting. The Astros retired his No. 33 jersey in 1992.

2013 - Katherine Hull, Pepperdine University
Katherine Hull arrived at Pepperdine in January 2000 and spent four seasons accumulating one of the top careers in Pepperdine history. Since 1992, Hull remains the only women's golfer from a non-BCS-affiliated school who has won National Player of the Year honors from the National Golf Coaches Association (now known as the Women's Golf Coaches Association). In addition to that honor in 2003, Hull also won the Dinah Shore Award. She was a three-time NGCA All-American, earning first team honors as a junior and senior and second team acclaim as a sophomore. All four seasons, Hull earned a spot on the All-WCC first team. She finished in the top 10 of her first nine tournaments during the 2002-03 season. The Waves won three WCC titles in her four seasons, with Hull placing in the top five all four seasons, including a second-place finish in 2002. She played a key role in Pepperdine's co-championship at the 2002 NCAA West Regional, tying for second place overall. The Waves advanced as a team to the NCAA Championships all four years, with three top 10 finishes and a program-best second-place result in 2003. Hull turned professional following her senior year, first playing on the Futures Tour in 2003 before qualifying for the LPGA Tour in 2004. She graduated with a degree in sports administration in 2003, earning 2003 NGCA All-American Scholar honors and being named to the WCC All-Academic squad twice. Hull was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009 (becoming the first women's golfer to be inducted) and into the WGCA Players Hall of Fame in December 2012.

2012 - Dana Jones, Pepperdine University
Dana Jones played four seasons for the Pepperdine Waves as a 6-foot-6 forward from Los Angeles, California. Jones was named the 1993 WCC Player of the year as well as being a three-time All-WCC first team selection and the 1991 WCC Freshman of the Year. He was the first player ever named to the WCC All-Tournament Team all four seasons and was also named MVP in 1994. He was a five-time WCC Player of the Week. In his senior year, he led the team in scoring (18.4 ppg), rebounding (9.7), steals (2.5) and blocks (1.3) during his senior year. Jones led the WCC in rebounding in each of his final two seasons. He ranks No. 2 all-time on Pepperdine's career scoring list with 1,677 points and ranks No. 1 in rebounds with 1031, No. 1 in steals with 211, and No. 1 in field goals made with 719. Jones capped off his career with three WCC regular-season titles and three WCC Tournament championships and competed for three NCAA Tournament teams and one NIT squad.

2011 - Wayne Wright, Pepperdine University
Wayne Wright served as the Athletic Director at Pepperdine University for 21 years (1976-1997). During his tenure, Pepperdine won seven NCAA titles in four different sports: baseball (1992), men's golf (1997), men's volleyball (1978, 1985, 1986, 1992), and men's water polo (1997). Pepperdine also won three individual NCAA titles in the sports of men's tennis (1988: singles, 1984, 1985: doubles). While the AD at Pepperdine, the Waves won 33 conference regular-season championships (23 WCC), 41 conference tournament championships (40 WCC), and made 87 NCAA Championship appearances. Wright also started the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 1980, instituted the "Wave Club" for the purpose of raising financial support for athletic programs, and added the sports of women's golf, women's swimming and women's soccer. Wright served on the NCAA Council from 1991-93, helped implement an academic advising and tutorial program in 1986, raising graduation rates, and had two student-athletes as valedictorians. Before his reign, Wright was also the golf coach for four seasons and the head baseball coach for eight seasons. A three-time WCC Coach of the Year, Wright led his baseball squads to a 195-166-3 record, three WCC titles and three NCAA playoffs.

2010 - Dr. Gail Hopkins, Pepperdine University
Dr. Gail Hopkins, who became the first person in his family to attend college when he selected Pepperdine over Stanford, California and UCLA in order to both play baseball and study religion, played baseball at Pepperdine from 1962-64 and earned All-America honors as a junior in 1963. Hopkins helped Pepperdine qualify for the NCAA Playoffs in both 1962 and 1963 and he became the first Pepperdine baseball player to ever reach the Major League when he broke in with the Chicago White Sox in 1968. He primarily played first base in seven seasons in the majors with the White Sox, Kansas City Royals and Los Angeles Dodgers, and hit a career-best .286 with Chicago in 1970. Hopkins was a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers team that won the National League Pennant and played in the World Series in 1974. He earned a Bachelor's degree from Pepperdine in 1966 as a double-major in Religion and Biology, a Master's in Religion from Pepperdine in 1974, a Ph.D. in Biology from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1977 and an MD from Rush Medical College in 1981. In addition, he will complete a Masters of Divinity degree from United Theological Seminary in May of 2010. Hopkins is believed to be the only player in Major League Baseball history to have earned both an MD and a Ph.D..

2009 - Doug Christie, Pepperdine University
Doug Christie, a 6'6" shooting guard, was the WCC's MVP in 1991 and 1992. In both seasons, Christie was also named All-American and a member of the All-WCC First Team, as he led the school in scoring, assists, and steals. His 1,392 career points made him the school's 15th leading scorer while his 395 assists placed him third in school history. Swingman Christie attracted dozens of NBA scouts to Firestone Fieldhouse and was later selected 17th overall in the 1992 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. Christie played for the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, and Los Angeles Clippers, where he would end his professional career. While playing for the Kings, Christie developed into one of the league's best defenders and was perennially named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.