You don’t have to look far on the University of San Diego campus to find proof of the school’s athletic success. Step inside Jenny Craig Pavilion and on the west wall there’s a banner, 21 feet by 15 feet, listing each year the Toreros’ women’s volleyball team advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
With head coach Jennifer Petrie’s program earning NCAA berths 20 of the past 22 seasons, nearly every stitch of the banner is filled.
Walk across the picturesque campus, past the Spanish Renaissance buildings, past the stunningly beautiful church of The Immaculata and you’ll come to the Skip and Cindy Hogan Tennis Center.
Hanging from a fence on the courts is a banner counting USD’s men’s NCAA Tournament appearances and West Coast Conference championships. Eight straight trips to the NCAAs and five consecutive WCC titles means the banner requires annual updating.
Hoof it back to the west side of campus, step into the football office and you’ll need sunglasses, what with the glare so bright from the collection of shiny silver trophies. The Toreros have won or shared the Pioneer Football League title six of the past seven years.
The expectations here are to win championships. They aren’t anything less. We aren’t interested in second, third or fourth place.”
Head coach Dale Lindsey was speaking about his football team but he could have been talking about the entire athletic department when he said, “The expectations here are to win championships. They aren’t anything less. We aren’t interested in second, third or fourth place.”
Opened in 1952, USD is a relatively young university but one that hits plenty of home runs in the athletic arena. Kris Bryant literally blasted an NCAA-leading 31 home runs in 2013 on his way to winning the Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s player of the year.
Bryant has had some success with the Chicago Cubs: 2015 National League Rookie of the Year; 2016 NL Most Valuable Player; and he fielded the ground ball that led to the final out of the 2016 World Series, ending a 108-year Cubs championship drought.
A fifth-round draft pick by the Detroit Lions in 2017, former USD cornerback Jamal Agnew stunned the NFL last season. Agnew led the NFL in punt return yards, was the only player to return two punts for touchdowns and was selected to the Associated Press’ All-Pro team.
Even Lindsey was amazed at Agnew’s breakout season.
“When you’re a rookie from a non-scholarship school and you become an all-pro punt returner,” says Lindsey, “that one hell of a leap.”
Are you an NBA fan? Five former USD basketball players have become NBA head coaches: Mike Brown (Cavaliers and Lakers), David Fizdale (Memphis and Knicks), Eric Musselman (Sacramento and Golden State), James Borrego (Charlotte) and Bernie Bickerstaff (five NBA teams).
Female athletes have established legacies at USD, plus gone on to professional sports success. In 1999, Zuzana Lesenarova won the NCAA women’s singles title.
“I believe she’s one of the best women’s players in college tennis, ever,” says Sherri Stephens, who will begin her 34th season as USD’s women’s coach.
Petia Yanchulova was a first team All-American volleyball player for Petrie, then went on to represent Bulgaria at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics in beach volleyball.
Multiple USD volleyball and women’s basketball players have played professionally.
USD fields 17 Division I athletic programs, ranging from football to golf on the men’s side, from rowing to swimming and diving for women.
The scholar-athletes benefit from first-class facilities and resources. Nestled at the base of a hill, Fowler Park is respected as one of the finest college baseball parks is the nation. There are 1,700 permanent seats with a capacity to host 3,000 fans.
Bryant christened the ballpark on a damp, foggy night during its initial 2013 season, blasting a home run deep into the gloom that sailed over an 80-foot light tower, traveling an estimated 550 feet.
Jenny Craig Pavilion opened on Oct. 5, 2000 but has been maintained so meticulously it still looks like new. The intimate 5,100-seat arena hosts USD’s men’s and women’s basketball teams, plus the Toreros’ volleyball team.
Maroon 5 performed at the JCP. The Dalai Lama and Jane Goodall made guest speaking appearances there.
When recently retired Carolyn Greer began as USD’s head athletic trainer in 1978, she was the only trainer on staff. Today, the athletic department features six full-time athletic trainers, a nutritionist, sports psychologist and four-person athletic performance staff.
The athletic performance staff is headed by Mark Lamoreaux, who is lauded by USD coaches and athletes.
“I personally credit a lot of the program’s success to coach Lam,” says Miles McArdle, who started on the football team at right offensive tackle the past four years. “The strength program he runs is top notch. He’s extremely detail oriented with his workouts. It’s broken down to a science.”
At USD, Winning on the Playing Field isn’t some catchy marketing pitch. It’s just how the Toreros roll.