Cal announces 31st Hall of Fame class
Observer-Reporter
Seven former Vulcans sports standouts and a former head coach headline the 31st Hall of Fame Class at PennWest California that was announced Thursday.
The class of inductees includes Mick Fennell (baseball), A.J. Jackson (football), Lindsay Reicoff (softball), Alex Sagl (softball), Derek Yobbi (men’s soccer), Alex Zanella (women’s cross country/track & field), Ed Alford (football) and Ed Denny (swimming coach).
The induction for the Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2026 is set for April 18, 2026.
In addition, Cal will be presenting the Vulcan Distinguished Service Award to Michael “DeMo” DeMichela, Class of 1976, and will be recognizing the Silver Anniversary of the 2000 NCAA national semifinalist volleyball team at the Hall of Fame Ceremony.
Fennell was a two-way starting outfield/pitcher from 2013-16. He was an ABCA All-American outfielder as a junior before being voted the 2016 PSAC West Athlete of the Year. Fennell sits in a tie for second all-time in NCAA Division II history with 27 triples. He also is tied for second in school history with 223 career hits and holds the all-time school record with 175 runs. Fennell, who won 16 games as a pitcher, played two seasons in the minor leagues with the St. Louis Cardinals after being selected in the 2016 MLB Draft.
Jackson was a starting wide receiver from 2008-09. He aided the Vulcans in winning back-to-back NCAA Super Region One championships and a pair of PSAC West titles with undefeated league records, plus the 2008 PSAC championship. Jackson was an Associated Press and D2Football.com All-American as a senior while being a regional candidate for the Harlon Hill Trophy. In 2009, he established a single-season school record with 101 receptions and ranked second in the country with 1,424 receiving yards. Jackson is second all-time in Cal history with 28 receiving touchdowns.
Reicoff and Sagl helped the Vulcans win the Atlantic Region championship as juniors, as the program made its first national championship appearance since 1999. Cal also won back-to-back PSAC championships in 2014 and 2015.
Reicoff was a four-year starting first baseman from 2013-16. She holds the all-time school record with 51 home runs and ranks among the top five all-time in school history with 165 RBI while collecting over 200 career hits. Reicoff was twice a NFCA All-American, including 2015 when she shattered the single-season school record with 19 homers.
Sagl was a four-year pitcher from 2013-16. She was a three-time NFCA All-American and finished second in school history with 90 wins, 680 innings pitched and 809 strikeouts. Sagl was the second pitcher in league history to be chosen the Pitcher of the Year in four-consecutive seasons. She was chosen the PSAC Tournament MVP as a junior.
Yobbi was a starting goalkeeper from 2007-10. He was tabbed the PSAC Tournament MVP in 2008 after helping Cal win the PSAC championship, the first in program history. Yobbi holds the school record with both 38 victories and 16 shutouts and is second with a 1.17 career goals-against average. He was the 2007 PSAC Freshman of the Year and earned All-PSAC laurels three times. Yobbi recorded nine shutouts as a senior while establishing a then-school record with a 0.91 GAA.
Zanella was a distance runner from 2012-16. She was a NCAA All-American in the one-mile run in 2015 and was an 11-time PSAC champion in her track & field career. Zanella was chosen both the Most Valuable Athlete and Outstanding Track Athlete at the 2015 PSAC Outdoor Championships after being named the 2015 PSAC Indoor Track Athlete of the Year. Zanella, who still holds the outdoor school record in the 3,000-meter run, was a two-time first-team academic All-American and twice competed at the national championships in cross country.
Alford, a Donora native and Ringgold graduate, was a starting wide receiver from 1985-87. He was an All-PSAC West selection in each of his last two seasons, earning first team status as a senior. Alford finished his career with 1,971 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns on 113 receptions after missing the 1984 campaign because of injury. As a senior, he ranked second in the league with both 55 receptions and 878 receiving yards.
Denny was head coach of the women’s swimming team from 2001-19. While leading the program, the Vulcans had 22 individual NCAA All-Americans with Melissa Gates winning three individual NCAA national championships. Denny also mentored 25 PSAC champions with two standouts being tabbed the PSAC Swimmer of the Year. Cal finished as high as third at the PSAC championships three times in a four-year span from 2009-12, plus recorded its best-ever finish at the NCAA championships in 2012.
DeMichela will be the recipient of the Vulcan Distinguished Service Award after maintaining passion, commitment and loyalty to the Cal football program for a span covering six different decades. He was a four-year starting tight end for the Vulcans in the 1970s and was the coordinator of the Vulcan Alumni Game for nearly 25 years. In the late 2000s, the football program created the DeMichela Award that is given annually to the player who best exhibits leadership, spirit and hustle during spring practice.
Cal will also be recognizing the 2000 NCAA national semifinalist volleyball team. The Vulcans advanced to the national semifinals for the first time in school history under head coach Limin Jin following four wins in the NCAA tournament, losing to the eventual national champions. Cal featured a trio of All-PSAC West selections in 2000, headlined by Dingding Lu, who led the country in hitting percentage and was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.
Additionally, the Vulcans will present the recipient of the Michael Duda Award for Athletic Achievement at the Hall of Fame ceremony. The award is presented to members of the university family for outstanding success in the field of athletics. Last spring, the honor was presented to Chelsy Burk, Class of 2008, who recently accepted the position of Senior Associate Commissioner, Governance and Compliance with the Mountain West Conference.