The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame’s Class of 2023 was ushered in with the induction of Lorrie Fair, Patrick Marleau, Dave Stieb and Chris Wondolowski.
Fair, 45, attended Los Altos High School before attending University of North Carolina, where she helped the Tar Heels win three NCAA titles in soccer. Fair earned 120 caps playing for the women’s national team and helped the 1999 World Cup team win gold and the 2000 Olympic team capture silver.
Stieb, 66, was born in Santa Ana, and he and his family moved to the South Bay in the early 1970s. He attended Oak Grove High School, San Jose City College and Southern Illinois University before he was drafted in the fifth round by the Toronto Blue Jays in 1978 as a 20-year-old. Stieb went on to become one of the major leagues’ winningest pitchers in the 1980s and finished his 16-season big league career with 176 victories.
Marleau, 44, was drafted second overall by the Sharks in 1997, and the then-17-year-old forward from a small town in Western Canada would become a cornerstone of the organization. Marleau played with the Sharks from 1997 to 2017, and again from 2019 to 2021, setting franchise marks for games played (1,607), goals (522) and points (1,111). He would finish his career with 556 goals, 1,197 points and an NHL record 1,779 games. Marleau’s number was retired from the Sharks earlier this year.
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Photos: Golden Gate Bridge suicide-deterring net nears completion Sports | Photos: World War II-era hangar in Southern California burns in massive fire Wondolowski, 40, went from being the San Jose Earthquakes’ late-round pick in the 2005 Major League Soccer supplemental draft to becoming the league’s all-time leading scorer, with 171 goals. He was a two-time MLS Cup Champion, earned the MLS Most Valuable Player award in 2012 and three consecutive MLS Best XI awards, along with two MLS scoring titles.
The Nov. 8 ceremony at SAP Center marked the 28th year of the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame honoring South Bay sports legends. Including this class, 121 South Bay sports figures have been enshrined.
Along with the four inductees were two high school athletes of the year, Danny Scudero Jr. and McKenna Woliczko, both from Archbishop Mitty; two amateur athletes, Rose Zhang and Tommy Troy, both from Stanford; and Special Olympics athlete Mathew Francavilla.
Reporting by Curtis Pashelka – see full story here.
