Longtime Chargers center Nick Hardwick, basketball star Candice Wiggins and Johnny Ritchey, a baseball player who broke the Pacific Coast League color barrier, will be inducted into the Breitbard Hall of Fame, the San Diego Hall of Champions announced Tuesday.
Hardwick anchored the Chargers’ offensive line from 2004 to 2014 and was named to the franchise’s 50th anniversary team. His years coincided with some of star running back LaDainian Tomlinson’s most productive seasons.
Since his retirement, he has become a local broadcast personality.
Wiggins led La Jolla Country Day to the state high school basketball championship game in all four of her years, winning twice. She was a four-time All-American at Stanford, and the national Player of the Year as a senior, when she led the Cardinal to the NCAA Tournament final.
She played eight seasons in the WNBA before retiring in March.
Ritchey, who attended San Diego High School, became the PCL’s first black player in 1948 with the minor league Padres. He never made it to the major leagues before his retirement in 1956. He died in 2003.
The three will be inducted at the annual Salute to the Champions dinner on Feb. 21 at the Town & Country Resort and Convention Center.
The San Diego Hall of Champions sports museum, which houses the Breitbard Hall of Fame, is in Balboa Park.
— City News Service