Former Pointer players celebrate their four state championships

Forty years ago they were the talk of not only Point Loma but the City of San Diego, the state of California, and in prep sports circles across the United States. And on Jan. 25 most of them returned to their home, the basketball court in Lee Trepanier gym at Point Loma High School to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their accomplishment.

These were the girls who, under Trepanier’s demanding coaching style, won not one, not two, not three, but four consecutive state championships from 1984 to 1987 while wearing Pointer jerseys.

Their record over those four years? A staggering 122 wins with one loss.

img 2228 (1) — The Pointers’ first state championship team (1984) visited the Hall of Champions in Balboa Park. Players are (front row, from left) Liza (Carillo) Leyva, Maureen Carey, Shannon Thompson, Yolanda Crawford, and Carol Simpson. (Middle row, from left) Beth (Thompson) Spillane, Valerie Thomas. (Back row, from left) Head coach Lee Trepanier, Shelley Clark, Terri Mann-Jacobs, Suzanne Eagye, Michelle Collum, and assistant coach Dave Aros. SCOTT HOPKINS/PENINSULA BEACON

Liza (Carrillo) Leyva, still residing in Point Loma, played on all four of the title teams and organized the reunion that drew former players, now in their late 50s, from as far as Virginia and Georgia. The main event was a celebration at halftime of the Pointer boys’ game on Jan. 25.

A biography of each woman was read as she crossed the court between a line of cheerleaders and a crowd that was awestruck by their accomplishments, some learning of it for the first time. Some ran with arms raised, a few walked and fist-bumped cheerleaders while some now use canes or wheeled devices to get around.

Their assistant coach Dave Aros was on hand to join the festivities. A young teacher when he assisted PLHS math teacher, Trepanier, Aros later became Point Loma’s head boys coach, teaching math and other classes while also coaching football under Bennie Edens and Mike Hastings. Even in retirement, Aros remains a beloved mentor to hundreds of former Pointers athletes and students.

Several awards were also presented. Aros received the Lee Trepanier Award, the Dave Aros Community Award went to Pointer Hall of Fame member Scott Hopkins, and the Special Recognition Award, a replica of her Pointer jersey, was given to Terri Mann-Jacobs.

The star of those championship teams was Mann-Jacobs, the most sought-after recruit of national universities and named the best player in the nation by Sports Illustrated. Now the Rev. Mann-Jacobs, wearing a broad smile with her PLHS letterman jacket draped over her shoulder, her statistics and achievements were read. They included a national rebounding record (2,256) and 3,188 points, second highest in state history.

img 2236 (1) — Following the ceremony, all returning members of the championship teams gathered for a group photo on the balcony of Lee Trepanier Gym. SCOTT HOPKINS/PENINSULA BEACON

Tepanier compiled a record of 335-51 over 14 Pointer seasons before being diagnosed with cancer in 1989. He passed away in 1991 at the age of 56. When the team last gathered in San Diego 12 years ago player Beth Thompson fought back tears as she spoke on the microphone to Trepanier’s survivors about the many ways he helped his players off the basketball court to prepare them for the college entrance and more.

While Point Loma High has a list of exceptional athletes who have gone on to play professionally, no Pointer team will likely ever match the girls’ basketball team from 1984 to 1987.

Team members who returned (years played):

Yolanda Crawford (1982-1984);

Monica (Filer) Elliott (1986-1989);

Claudine (Neves) Davis (1987-1990);

Kim Tullis (1984-1987);

Beth (Thompson) Spillane (1983-1984);

Liza (Carrillo) Leyva (1984-1987);

Jessica (Benton) White (1985-1986);

Tyeast Brown (1987-1990);

Serena Timmons (1985-1986);

Shelley Clark (1983-1984);

Lois Guillory (1985-1988);