Trio of Spartans enter Hall of Fame

Three former La Cañada High student-athletes were inducted into the school’s hall of fame Friday night.

Tracy Neumeier Chandler, Vanessa Young Burnett and Mike Gaudino were each inducted before the Spartans boys’ basketball game against Blair Friday after all three left a permanent mark on the schools girls’ or boys’ volleyball programs.

Chandler and Burnett both graduated in 2001 and teamed up to lead the Spartans to four consecutive Rio Hondo League championships, three CIF Southern Section semifinals and two straight state playoffs.

“It’s such an honor to be here standing next to Vanessa,” Chandler said. “She’s my partner in crime and I couldn’t have done it without her and the rest of my teammates.”

Chandler holds the school record for assists in every category: match (80), season (984) and career (2,883). Burnett benefited from Chandler’s passes as she set La Cañada’s school record for kills in a season with 336.

Gaudino led the Spartans to their first and only league championship in boys’ volleyball in 2006. He also holds the school record for kills with more than 1,300.

Brock Turner, Gaudino’s former coach at La Cañada, said Gaudino simply played at a different level.

“And what a level it was,” Turner said. “He played hard and made everyone around him better.”

-Andrew Shortall