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Cal Poly Pomona Athletics Hall of Fame

Tony Reyes HOF

Tony Reyes

  • Class
    1984
  • Induction
    2016
  • Sport(s)
    Track & Field, Cross Country
As one of the top distance runners in the history of Cal Poly Pomona, Tony Reyes led the men's cross country team to an NCAA Division II National Championship in 1983.

On Feb. 26, Reyes will enter the Broncos' Hall of Fame class as a 2016 inductee alongside Jeff Bonds, Debra Larsen and Mark Wiley.

 "Receiving the call about the Hall of Fame induction, I am definitely thrilled and excited," Reyes said. "It's great to be considered with the other Hall of Fame inductees. This is something you don't really expect to happen but you can only hope for."

Also starring in track and field, Reyes received All-American recognition in all four years of competition. In total, he finished as a two-time All-American in cross country and five-time All-American in track and field.

After graduating from Damien High School in La Verne, Reyes started his CPP career in 1979. He became a Civil Engineering major during his time as a Bronco.

Competing at the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships four times, Reyes qualified as an individual in 1979, 1980 and 1982. In the 1980 national race at Wisconsin-Parkside, he received All-American recognition. In the 1982 event, he battled snow and -12 degree temperatures in Minnesota.

The ultimate highlight of Reyes' career certainly is Saturday, Nov. 12, 1983 while returning to Wisconsin-Parkside. Placing three runners in the top 14, the Broncos captured the NCAA D-II national title. Reyes crossed the line in 31:09 to place 11th overall as teammates Matt Blaty and Gary Borbon joined him in the top group. Also contributing for CPP in that race were Steven Perez, Jeff Williams, David Loud and Brock Vaughn.

"The national title feels like it happen just yesterday," Reyes said. "I'm excited to be able to share this Hall of Fame honor with my teammates and hopefully we can get the entire team to show up for the ceremony. The national title happened not just because of the runners that went to nationals, it was attributed to the hard work of everyone on the roster helping to motivate and train with us."

In his first season of track and field at the collegiate level, he earned All-American status in the 1,500-meter event. That proved to be Reyes' top event as he later added All-American accolades for the 1,500 in 1981, 1982 and 1984. He capped off his track and field career with another All-American honor in the 3,000-meter steeplechase as a senior.

More than 30 years after his CPP career completed, Reyes continues to hold the school records in the mile (4:08.18) and the steeplechase (8:53.28). He also ranks second for cross country at the 10,000-meter distance, running a 30:08.0 mark at the NCAA Regional in Riverside in 1982.

Later in his professional career, Reyes coached at Cal Poly Pomona for 10 years. He served as an assistant for three different head coaches: Jim Sackett, Troy Johnson andOctavious Gillespie-Bennett.

Under Reyes' guidance, Tiffany Dinh became a two-time All-American in cross country and Tiffany Turner received All-American recognition in the steeplechase at the Track & Field National Championships in 2009. In Fall 2010 with the help of Reyes' leadership, the Broncos' women's cross country team advanced to nationals for the first time since 1985 and ended up placing 19th at the D-II Championships held in Louisville, Ky.

"As a coach, I constantly told the student-athletes about the possibilities of success," Reyes said. "Having been through it as a young runner myself, I could relate to them about the opportunities ahead of them and try to keep their focus on that potential success."

Currently, Reyes manages the ACTS Thrift Store in Pasadena. ACTS has contributed more than $500,000 to the Lake Avenue Foundation that provides mentoring, tutoring and after school programs for at-risk children in the Pasadena-Foothill communities.

Tony Reyes HOF
 
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