UKIAH — Six former Mendocino College student-athletes have been elected into the 2009 Mendocino College Athletic Hall of Fame.
The fourth annual Mendocino College Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony and banquet takes place Feb. 28 beginning at 6 p.m. at Barra Winery.
Peter Garrett, now of Venice, was a two-time All-Conference selection in basketball from 1977-1979. He led the Eagles to the state playoffs both years and earned All-State honorable mention honors in 1979.
After finishing his career as the all-time leading scorer at Mendocino College with more than 1,200 points, Garrett earned a scholarship to San Francisco State University. While at San Francisco State, he averaged 20 points per game.
After college, Garrett started his own construction company called Garrett Construction. It is based out of Los Angeles.
Justin Lappin of Middletown was a two-year starter at quarterback from 1999-2000 and led the Eagles to a school record for wins (9-1) and to the Santa Cruz Lions Bowl in 1999.
Lappin was a two-year captain along with being a two-year All-Conference selection. In 2000, he was selected first-team All-State while throwing for 3,200 yards and 33 touchdowns.
“Coming from a small town, Mendocino College was a good fit for me. The atmosphere of a smaller campus and classes allows you to meet a lot of new people and have one-on-one time with professors,” Lappin said.
Lappin, who guided Middletown High School to the first of its three North Coast Section championships in 1997, now works for Pepsi-Cola in Santa Rosa.
Sean Leslie, a former Willits High School star, was a two-year All-Bay Valley Conference selection as a pitcher from 1992-1994 and was elected team most valuable player in 1994. While pitching for Mendocino he was drafted twice by the Florida Marlins.
After Mendocino College, he played at the University of Nevada-Reno for one season and then signed with the Montreal Expos. Leslie spent four years in the Expos organization.
“Mendocino College is a great school. It is a place where people will have more opportunities to succeed,” Leslie said.
Leslie works for Granite Construction in Ukiah.
Kelsey Dent played volleyball from 2001-2002 and led the Eagles to a 2002 Bay Valley championship. She was selected as an All-Bay Valley Conference setter twice and served as the team captain in 2002.
“She was a great leader and had tremendous worth ethic. She is one of the best volleyball players I have ever coached at Mendocino College,” former Mendocino College head volleyball coach Ed Schweitzer said.
Dent earned the Mendocino College Foundation Schol-arship in 2002 and was an academic All-Conference award winner in 2002. Dent also was on the dean”s list with a 3.75 GPA.
After a stellar career at Mendocino, Dent transferred to the University of California at Davis. She played on the club volleyball team for three years and graduated with a degree in exercise biology.
Dent is pursing her master”s degree in physical therapy at California State University at Northridge and hopes to work with outpatients receiving physical therapy.
“I had a wonderful experience at Mendocino College. I was able to get a lot of classes out of the way before transferring to Davis, and Mendocino also prepared me for both Davis and graduate school,” Dent said.
Jerry Dietrick played on the Mendocino football team from 1978-1979 and was a Golden Valley Conference All-League selection. Dietrick was twice selected as the team”s most valuable defensive player. He led the team in tackles both years.
Rich Rowland, a former Cloverdale High School sports star, played catcher on the Mendocino College baseball team for one season (1988) and earned team most valuable player and All-Conference honors.
After his freshman season, the Detroit Tigers selected Rowland in the 17th round of the draft. He played in the organization”s A, AA and instructional leagues from 1988-1993. In 1990, Rowland reached the Tiger”s AAA-affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens. In his time with the Detroit organization, Rowland was brought up to the major leagues several times.
Before the 1994 season, he was traded to the Boston Red Sox where he played two seasons. Rowland finished his career in the minors before retiring in 1997.
Rowland currently works as a computer technologist for Tech for Me in Cloverdale.
For more information, contact Mendocino College athletic director Tom Gang at 468-3141.
