PIL Hall of Fame

08/27/2026

We're talking Grant High School baseball, player development, coaching, leadership and the journey to the next level! Click here to listen now: https://www.pilhalloffame.org/stories

This episode features Grant Head Baseball Coach Matt Kabza, celebrating 20 years of teaching and coaching, and Jinki Tomita, the 2026 PIL Pitcher of the Year and First Team All-State selection.
Matt shares his journey from being coached by Jeff Erdman more than 20 years ago to building one of Portland's most respected baseball programs. Jinki takes us inside his four-year varsity career, the work behind his development, his favorite Grant memories, and his next chapter at Feather River Junior College in California.

We'll talk baseball, pitching, college, family, mentorship, teamwork—and what it really takes to become a successful student-athlete.

Technical note: If you follow us on your favorite platform (ie; Apple Podcast, Spotify, Youtube, etc.) it will autoload and notify you. You can pick a platform from your phone, then follow, or tap here to get started: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2590577/episodes/19705628

08/26/2026

Things are starting friends. Let's make a commitment to watch more PIL Sports this season. Note 40% of the top teams are in the PIL!

08/18/2026

You send, we will post them! Two Photos: 1936 Roosevelt HS Football Team and Rex Forker, All PIL halfback from Roosevelt in 1928 and 1929.

08/17/2026

08/15/2026

The Lincoln High School Alumni Association invites alumni and friends to gather in remembrance of Rick Sanders, Lincoln High School Class of 1963.

Rick was one of Oregon's most accomplished wrestlers. At Lincoln, he compiled an 80-1 record and won three Oregon state high school championships. He later attended Portland State University on scholarship, where he won the 1965 NAIA National Championship at 115 pounds and received the Outstanding Wrestler Award.

Rick went on to earn Olympic silver medals in freestyle wrestling in 1968 and 1972. Following his tragic death in an automobile accident in 1972, his legacy has continued to inspire the Lincoln community. Donations to Rick's Memorial Fund have helped make the replacement of his headstone possible.

HEADSTONE UNVEILING Saturday, August 15, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.
Forrester Cemetery 31885 SE Highway 211 | Eagle Creek, Oregon 97022

Following the unveiling: A social gathering will be held at

Eagle Creek Saloon in Estacada, Oregon.

08/15/2026

Some controversy about the length of construction timeframe at Cleveland H.S., so we will take it straight from the district website. Please don't shoot the messenger.

Construction Status: 0% Complete
Deconstruction start (estimated): July 2026
New building construction start (estimated): Winter 2027
Athletic fields construction finish (estimated): Fall 2029
New building construction finish (estimated): Fall 2029

Cleveland Modernization - Bond

08/13/2026

One of the gems we discovered in storage a few weeks ago, while our Historical Preservation Committee was sorting and organizing the significant archives at Portland Public Schools, was a wonderful book titled One Hundred Years of Excellence: Jefferson High School Centennial Celebration, 1909–2009.

A very special shout-out to John Aust, Jefferson Class of 1962. Over the years, John has dedicated countless hours to researching and preserving Jefferson’s rich sports history. He has published volumes of material documenting Jefferson athletics all the way back to 1909.

If we had a John Aust at every Portland high school, we could create an incredible Hall of Fame Library—preserving the stories, records, photographs and accomplishments of the thousands of student-athletes, coaches and teams who have helped shape Portland high school sports history.

Thank you, John, for making sure Jefferson’s history is never forgotten. What a treasure!

08/13/2026

Two New Member of the Month profiles published and posted in the newsletter and our website. This month HOF writer Dick Baltus focused on two basketball greats, Rick Ravio and Cindy Brown.

It doesn’t take much more than a cursory glance at the University of Portland’s all-time basketball records to figure out the impact Rick Raivio (Benson, 1975) had on the school on the bluff during his four years there. His name sits at or near the top of several statistical categories: https://www.pilhalloffame.org/members-of-the-month/rick-raivio

Brown entered Grant, “a frail little freshman. I was tall but probably weighed a buck 25, so I didn’t have much weight to throw around and didn’t really know what I was able to do.” https://www.pilhalloffame.org/members-of-the-month/cindy-brown

08/11/2026

This photo is of some of the members of the 1941 Roosevelt HS basketball team. Left to right include Wally Chullo, Milan “Babe” Erceg, Coach Rollie Rourke, Bill Taitt, Dave Teyema, and Bob Bennett.

How many are in the Hall of Fame? https://www.pilhalloffame.org/hall-of-famers?School_equal=%5B%22Roosevelt%22%5D

The year 1941 was a watershed moment in U.S. history—a year that closed the curtain on the Great Depression and opened a new era of total war, global leadership, and economic transformation. Photo courtesy of Jim Kennison.

08/09/2026

1921 Benson Football team.
1931 was the first Benson football player inducted in the PIL Hall of Fame, Raymond "Butch" Morse. https://www.pilhalloffame.org/hall-of-famers/raymond-butch-morse