The Liberty Union High School District’s 18th annual Athletic Hall of Fame Awards dinner was held on April 18 honoring the 2009 inductees Chris Bodishbaugh, Gregory Chappel, Krista Houseman, Fred Kelley, John Rogers, Matt Webber and the 1978 Liberty Union High School baseball team.





Chris Bodishbaugh

Chris Bodishbaugh attended Freedom High School from 1999 to 2003. During that time he established himself as one of the premier athletes ever to play sports in the Liberty Union High School District. As a result of his efforts, he is the first athlete from Freedom High School to be inducted into the Liberty Union High School District Hall of Fame.

Chris was a three-sport athlete who followed his dream to become a major league baseball player. He’s the first athlete from Freedom to accept a full scholarship from a Division I School and the first to be selected in the pro baseball draft straight out of high school.

In high school, Chris did not play football on the freshman level, choosing to play with the East County Lions, with whom he had a stellar year. As a sophomore, he was the Offensive Player of the Year for the Falcon’s JV team. In his junior season, he split time at quarterback and receiver, earning his varsity letter. As a senior, Chris was chosen All-BVAL and All Contra Costa Times in 2000. He threw for 1,282 yards and 13 touchdowns – and was intercepted only four times.

In basketball, Chris was the Most Valuable Frosh Player in 1999. He then went on to earn two varsity basketball letters as a sophomore and junior. He chose not to play basketball his senior season. As a frosh baseball player, Chris was the junior varsity’s Most Valuable Player. He lettered in varsity baseball as a sophomore and junior, and his outstanding senior season capped a brilliant four-year career.

Chris was selected as his team’s Most Valuable Player; All-BVAL First Team; BVAL’s Most Valuable Player and First Team All-State. He threw a 92 mph baseball, compiled a 6-5 record, 2.00 ERA, earned one save, walked only 20 batters and struck out 82 in 70 innings. At bat, Chris notched a 3.41 batting average for 82 at bats, recording 28 hits, five doubles, one triple, one home run and 11 stolen bases. He played first base when not pitching. As a result of his sparkling senior year, Chris was honored by the Contra Costa Times as Best of the Best 100 Athletes in the area.

Although he had been drafted by the Major League Baseball’s Florida Marlins, Chris signed a football scholarship with San Jose State because he wanted to play college football. He entered San Jose State in the fall of 2003, played football and was named Hardest Working Athlete on the team as a freshman.

In the spring semester, the Spartans refused Chris’ request to play baseball, so he withdrew from San Jose State, relinquishing his scholarship, and came home to Los Medanos College, where he played baseball for two seasons, 2004-05. Chris was named LMC’s Most Valuable Player those two seasons, as well as the First Team All Golden Gate Conference both years. During the 2004 football season, he played for the LMC football team and was selected as the Offensive Player of the Year and named to the First Team All Golden Gate Conference.

After leaving Los Medanos College, Chris went on to CSU Chico and played one year of Division II baseball. He then signed with the Marlins and is now playing minor league baseball in the Marlins’ minor league development program. Last season, Chris played for the Single-A Greensboro Grasshoppers.

Gregory Chappel

Greg came to Liberty High School in 1980 to restart and rekindle the wrestling program. He was a dynamic young coach who had attended Fresno State and was teaching in the Brentwood Union School District. Due to the wonderful program started by Superintendent William Bristow, many Brentwood Union School District employees were encouraged to coach at Liberty High School while continuing to teach for their district.

During the first four years of Greg’s tenure as wrestling coach, he worked to establish a sound program base – club wrestling and the elementary school wrestling program. He was also able to surround himself with many outstanding men who loved wrestling and helped him with his project.

For three years, the program developed slowly but surely under Chappel’s guidance. In the 1983-84 seasons, the Lions won their first league title – four years after restarting the program. During the 1984-85 seasons, the Lions repeated as league champions, posting a 6-0 record.

In 1988-89, the Lions won the league championship and placed fifth at the North Coast Sectional tournament, a major breakthrough and a harbinger of things to come. The 1989-90 teams went 15-1, earning league-champion status once again and becoming the first Liberty High School boys team to win a North Coast championship in any sport.

The Lions entered the 1990-91 NCS championships having graduated eight seniors from the year before and having placed second in the league to College Park. The Lions were entering the consolation medal rounds in third place, but won 11 straight matches – including the finals – to come out on top and win their second NCS championship.

In 1991-92, the Lions again won the league championship and their third consecutive NCS championship. But they weren’t finished. They won league titles and North Coast crowns again in 1996-97 and in 2002-03. In the 2007-08 seasons, the Lions placed third in the league with a 9-2 record but came back to win the North Coast Section title for the sixth time and became the NCS Dual Meet Champions – 3A.

Coach Chappel’s record is nothing short of outstanding: 16 league championships in 21 years and six North Coast Section championships. His overall record encompasses 16 league championships, six North Coast Section titles, 319 wins, 63 losses and four ties. He coached 115 league champions, 31 NCS champions, two state champions, 19 state medalists, 17 high school All-Americans, eight junior college All-Americans and one NCAA Division II All-American.

Coach Chappel’s personal honors include the 1986 Parker Robb Coach of the Year award; the 1998, 2002 and 2008 Contra Costa Times Coach of the Year award and the 2006 North Coast Section Honor Coach. He served on the NCS Wrestling Advisory Committee since 1988, the C.I.F. Wrestling Advisory Committee since 2005 and been the California USA Wrestling National Teams’ Director since 1996.

Coach Chappel and his wife, Vicky, have two sons and a daughter and live in Brentwood.

Krista Houseman

Krista attended Liberty High School from 1998 to 2002. During those four years she became one of the most accomplished athletes ever to perform for Liberty in volleyball – three of those years as an outstanding varsity letterman who made the First Team All-League each year.

As a sophomore, Krista was selected as the Most Valuable Player at the Chico Tournament. She was a Brentwood Press Athlete of the Week and the Brentwood News’ Scholar Athlete of the Year. In her junior season, Krista was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the varsity team, the Brentwood Lions Club Scholar Athlete of the Year, and won the Athletic Director’s Academic Award with a GPA of 3.54.

In the year 2002, her senior year, Krista received more accolades for her outstanding play and leadership. She was the recipient of the Volleyball Captains Award and the Volleyball Coaches Award. She was also recognized for her outstanding academic standing by being awarded the Athletic Director’s Academic Award for earning a 3.86 GPA.

Krista also played basketball as a freshman and senior. As a member of the varsity team her senior year, Krista showed her outstanding all-around athletic talent by being named Most Valuable Defensive Player of the team. She was the second leading scorer on the team, averaging 12.1 points per game. While playing high school volleyball, Krista was voted to the Top 100 Prep Athletes squad by the Contra Costa Times and Best of the Best in girls’ volleyball by School Sports Magazine. She finished her senior-year volleyball season with more than 700 kills and 10 blocks per game.

Upon graduation from Liberty, Krista accepted a full scholarship to Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. She also drew full-ride scholarship offers from the University of Utah, University of Miami and University of Cincinnati. She was the first Liberty volleyball player to receive a full-ride scholarship to a Division I school.

While at Loyola, Krista was an outstanding player on a team that went to the NCAA Tournament all four years she played. Krista holds the all-time season record at Loyola Marymount for her .356 attack percentage. She also received an All-Tournament selection at the University North Carolina’s Glaxo Smith Kline Classic in 2004 after making 53 kills during the tournament.

The head volleyball coach at Loyola Marymount University paid Krista a high compliment when he said, “Krista is one of the team’s most versatile players. She can play any position at the net. Krista is the hardest hitter I’ve ever coached in 15 years of collegiate volleyball.”

Krista graduated from Loyola Marymount University in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts. She lives in Manhattan Beach, where she is attending Paul Mitchell Beauty College.

Fred Kelley

Fred Kelley attended Liberty High School from 1996 to 2000. In those four years he became one of Liberty’s most outstanding two-sport athletes.

In football, Fred earned his freshman letter in 1996 and won the Coaches Award. He lettered in JV football as a sophomore. As a junior, Fred became a force to be reckoned with when playing with the Lions. He recorded a stellar season, running for 822 yards and 11 touchdowns, earning him a BVAL Second All-League Team honor. He was also honored by the coaches with the Varsity Coaches Award.

At the beginning of the 1999 season, his senior year, Fred was picked as one of the Pre-Season Top Players in the area. He didn’t let the press down. In the opening game of the season, Fred ran for 254 yards against Freedom High School. That feat broke the Liberty High School single-game rushing record for the most yards gained by an individual on opening night for the entire North Coast section.

Fred rushed for a total of 1,043 yards and scored 10 touchdowns in his senior season. He was selected as the Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Back, captain and was again selected to the Second Team All BVAL. Fred was also named All-Region by Prep Stars Magazine. As a result of his fantastic season, he was selected to the Contra Costa County All-Star Team that played the Alameda County All-Stars – and beat them. Fred scored two touchdowns in the game and was named the team captain.

Fred was not only an outstanding football player; he was an outstanding wrestler for Liberty High School. As a sophomore in 1997-98, he placed third in league and qualified for the North Coast Section. As a junior, he placed second at the league level and again was a NCS qualifier. In his senior year, Fred was league champion, a NCS qualifier, won the Lou Bronzan Invitation Tournament and was selected to the BVAL All-League Wrestling Team. In the spring of 2000 Fred was named The Yearbook Male Athlete of the Year.

After high school, Fred attended Los Medanos College, where he played football for two years, 2000 and 2001. During the 2001 season, Fred was named team captain and Most Valuable Defensive Player. He was also chosen as All-State Player of the Week and named to the Mid Empire Conference All-League Team.

Fred then attended the University of Idaho, where he was red-shirted for the next season. He decided to transfer to Sacramento State University, where he sat out one year. Fred returned to the football field in 2004, playing for the Sacramento State Hornets for one year as a defensive end and linebacker.

While working on his master’s degree and finishing his teaching credentials, he has been coaching. He coached football as an assistant at Florin High School. For the past two years he has been serving as the offensive graduate assistant to the football team at Sacramento State, with special emphasis on coaching the tight ends.

Fred graduated from CSU Sacramento with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology, and continues to reside in Sacramento while finishing his master’s degree and working on his California teaching credentials.

1978 Liberty Union High School Baseball Team

The 1978 Liberty Union High School Varsity baseball team, coached by Jerry Black, was only the second Lion team to win a championship since 1956 (the 1970 team won the EBAL championship outright, and the 1978 team went 13-7-1, tying Alhambra High for the championship with an 8-4 league record. The Lions played Alhambra High in a league playoff game at a neutral site and lost 1-0 in a pitchers’ duel between Liberty’s Mark Biddle and Alhambra ace Vince Albanese. Alhambra went on to represent the FAL in the section tournament.

The 1978 Foothill Athletic League was remarkably well balanced; every team was capable of beating the other. The final standings: Liberty 8-4, Alhambra 8-4, Campolindo 7-5, Acalanes 6-6, Las Lomas 5-7, Miramonte 5-7, and Del Valle 3-9.

The 1978 Liberty team took third place in the Rio Vista Easter Baseball Tournament with a 2-0-1 record. After the second game, against Dixon High School, was tied 3-3 through the 10th inning, tournament officials decided to toss a coin to keep the tournament on schedule. Liberty lost the coin toss and went on to win the third-place trophy.

The 1978 team placed five players on the FAL All-League Team: First Team – pitcher Mark Biddle and catcher Tom Lawler; Second Team – first baseman Nick Capsaliaris and shortstop Mike Morado; and Honorable Mention – pitcher Barry Schwitters.

The 1978 squad achieved a team batting average of .254 for the season, led by Mike Morado (.420), Nick Capsaliaris (.369) and Hal McCauley (.333). Capsaliaris led the team with three home runs, and Mark Biddle and Barry Schwitters led the pitching staff throughout the season. Biddle worked 66 innings and recorded a 1.17 ERA. Schwitters’ ERA was 2.55 in 60 innings.

John Rogers

John Rogers attended Liberty High School from 1966 until 1970. During his four-year stint at Liberty, John became an outstanding football player and team leader. As a freshman, John lettered in frosh football and basketball, but it soon became apparent to all that his main desire and focus was on becoming an outstanding football lineman.

John earned his JV letter as a sophomore and worked tirelessly on his technique. As a junior, he blossomed into an outstanding two-way lineman – tough, fast, aggressive and above all, intelligent. He became an integral part of Liberty’s outstanding offensive and defensive lines and was rewarded by being selected to the Second Team All-EBAL defensive unit.

By the 1969 season, John had become the quiet but tough and aggressive leader of a team that would go undefeated. He was chosen co-captain in 1969 and was selected All-EBAL First Team as an offensive and defensive player. Always mentally in the game, John broke through on defense against Amador High School, stole a handoff and rambled into the end zone to score, jump-starting the Lions, who at the time were struggling. The team went on to score 12 points in the final six minutes to tie the game and gain the co-championship.

After high school, John attended Diablo Valley College and lettered in 1970 and ’71, starting as offensive guard in ’71. Upon leaving DVC, he played and lettered for Linfield College from 1972 through ’75 and was selected All-Northwest Conference offensive guard in 1974, All-NAIA District II offensive guard in 1974 and All-Northwest (small college) offensive guard in 1974.

As a member of the Wildcat football team, John played in the National Playoffs in 1975 and on two Northwest Conference Championship Teams in 1972 and ’75. John was rewarded for his stellar senior season in ’75 by being selected to the All-Northwest Conference First Team Offensive Line, and was named Unanimous Choice and Little All-Northwest All-Star Offensive Line (selected by Pacific Northwest Sportswriters).

Upon graduating from Linfield College, John taught high school in three districts in Oregon from 1976-’94 and coached football with outstanding success. His teams played for three Oregon State championships, winning two in 1977 and ’81. He was selected for the prestigious honor of Oregon’s East-West Shrine Coach in 1982. In 1982, he was honored by his Alma Mater by being inducted into the Linfield College Coaches Hall of Fame. He was also the recipient of several Coach of the Year awards during his career.

In 1994, John left coaching and high school teaching to become a school administrator in Page, Ariz., where he served as an assistant superintendent for the Page Unified School District from 1994 to’97. He left Arizona in 1997 and is presently the superintendent of the Atascadero Unified School District in Atascadero, Calif.

John earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Linfield College and completed his administrative credential at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore. and Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. John and his wife, Teri, have two children: Heidi, who resides in Newport, Ore. and is a teacher; and David, who works in natural resource management and lives in San Bernadino County.

J. Matthew Webber

Matt Webber attended Liberty High School from 1999 until 2003. During that time he left a legacy of outstanding volleyball play that will continue to be the standard of excellence for other Lions to emulate.

Matt earned his varsity letter in volleyball as a sophomore in 2001. As a junior and senior in 2002 and 2003, he again earned his varsity letters, as well as Most Valuable Player and Bay Valley Athletic League All-League Team selections both years. In 2002, Matt was named a North Coast Section Distinguished Scholar Athlete, and in May of 2003, recognized as a member of Volleyball Magazine’s Fab 50 Selection.

In June of 2003, Matt was named Contra Costa Times Athlete of the Year in Volleyball and Brentwood News Athlete of the Year. He was recognized for his leadership and academics during his years at Liberty. In the summer of 2002, he was American Legion Boy’s State Attendee, and in 2003 attended the National Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. Matt was selected to Who’s Who among American High School Students in 2003 and the Academic Honor Roll every semester in high school. His final GPA was 3.57.

After graduating from Liberty, Matt had the honor of playing with top U.S. junior teams. In 2003, he played with the Junior Olympics All Tournament Team in Phoenix. He was named No. 8 of 20 players competing with Team Utah at the Moscow-Utah Games in Russia. In August of 2004, he played in Norceca, Canada for a Junior National team that placed second, and in August of 2005 on a Junior National Team that placed eighth in the World Championships in India.

Matt accepted a volleyball scholarship to the University of California Irvine, where he played all four years on outstanding teams in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. He was selected to the Second Team All-Conference in 2006 and 2007. He was also named Second Team All-American for the same two seasons.

But that’s only part of the story. Matt led the UC Irvine team to the NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship in 2007 in Columbus, Ohio. He was named to the 2007 NCAA All-Tournament Team and was voted the Outstanding Player of the Tournament. Against Penn State in Irvine’s semi-final game, the 6-foot-7-inch Webber notched 19 kills. Matt then turned it up a notch and made 22 kills and hit .457 in the championship match against IPFW (Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne) – 41 kills in two NCAA tournament games!

Other honors garnered by Matt at UC Irvine include 2004 Volleyball Hall of Fame Classic – All Tournament Team and 2007 Scholar Athlete Award, as well as the MPSF Player of the Week and National Player of the Week for April 20, 2007. He was also selected as the Most Valuable Player in 2007 at the Elephant Bar Tournament at UC Santa Barbara.

Matt made the record books for seasonal totals at UC Irvine: No. 8 in kills (502); No. 9 in digs (190); No. 7 in attack attempts (47); No. 18 in points per game (4.79); and No. 16 in aces per game (.373). His career records at UC Irvine include: No. 3 in kills (1,482); No. 3 in attack attempts (3,042); and No. 2 in service aces (107). He holds a conference record in aces per game (.380).

Matt has gone on to a professional volleyball career. In 2007-08, he led the Santa Sport to a Finnish National Title in Rovaniemi, Finland and was named Most Outstanding Player. In December of 2007, he was named the Most Outstanding Player at a tournament in Holland. Matt is currently playing for GFCOA-Ajaccio Volleyball in Corsica, France.