Legends of South Valley

The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame honors those who have made extraordinary contributions in the sports world and are South Bay legends. On Nov. 13, the Hall of Fame added four new members and one was Gilroy boxer Robert Guerrero.

Another Gilroyan, Nola Matthews, was honored as the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame Female Amateur Athlete of the Year. Matthews, 18, is a talented gymnast whose career highlights so far include a gold medal at last year’s Pan American Games. 

Gilroy native Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero won multiple titles in four different weight divisions to become the most accomplished boxer in Santa Clara County history. His nickname came from the way his elusive style haunted opponents who could not corner him. 

In his early days, Guerrero was trained in boxing in Gilroy by his father Ruben Guerrero, a former amateur champion. At age 15, Robert Guerrero won a Junior Olympics gold medal. He turned professional on May 22, 2001 at the age of 18 and went on to have an amazing career. His record of 38-6-1 includes 20 knockouts.

Guerrero won the World Boxing Council North American Boxing Federation featherweight title against Cesar Figueroa on Dec. 9, 2004. 

In his first world championship fight on Sept. 2, 2006, Guerrero defeated Eric Aiken by an eighth-round technical knockout. An analysis states Guerrero used inside fighting to neutralize Aiken’s power. Aiken did not return after the eighth round and Guerrero had claimed his first world title belt. 

After several title defenses, concluding with an eighth-round knockout of Jason Litzau, Guerrero vacated the title to move up in weight classes.

On Aug. 22, 2009, Guerrero defeated Malcoln Klassen for the International Boxing Federation Super Featherweight title. Guerrero won the fight by a unanimous decision for the world title. 

On April 30, 2010, Guerrero moved up to the lightweight division to fight Robert Arrieta. Guerrero won by technical knockout in the eighth round. On July 31, 2010, Guerrero moved up to the junior welterweight division and faced Cuban fighter Joel Casamayor and won a 10-round unanimous decision. 

Guerrero on Nov. 6, 2010 faced Vicente Escobedo for the vacant World Boxing Organization Inter-Continental lightweight title. Guerrero knocked Escobedo down in the third and sixth rounds en route to a ten-round unanimous decision. 

On April 9, 2011, Guerrero faced Michael Katsidis for the interim World Boxing Association and WBO lightweight titles. Guerrero won the bout with a 12-round unanimous decision. 

In a post-fight interview when asked about his hometown, Guerrero said, “It’s nice when you’re pretty much their biggest thing besides garlic in Gilroy.”

Guerrero jumped two weight classes to face unbeaten welterweight Selcuk Aydin on July 28, 2012. In San Jose, Guerrero won via unanimous decision for the interim World Boxing Council welterweight title. 

In the latter stages of his career, on May 4, 2013, Guerrero fought Floyd Mayweather Jr. (43-0, 26 KOs) in a WBC welterweight championship fight but lost by unanimous decision in front of a crowd of 15,880 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.

At his retirement, Guerrero said in a statement, “First, I want to thank God for allowing me to have a wonderful career. I’m a kid from a small town in Gilroy, California, who made it to the mountain top of the boxing world. 

“When I was a young kid growing up, I always believed in myself, but never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined a small-town kid like myself would be fighting in front of millions of fans.”

Guerrero continued, “I was blessed to win multiple world titles in four divisions. A boxer’s career is a long and tough road. Many tears were shed, lots of blood, and tons of sweat. Many miles were traveled, thousands of rounds sparred, none were easy and nothing was ever given to me. 

“I earned everything I got the old fashion way. I never ducked anyone and fought the best fighters in the world. I fought my way through every obstacle to make sure my fans enjoyed every second, of every round, of my fights.”

The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame was founded in 1995. Each inductee is recognized with a bronze plaque permanently installed on the concourse at the SAP Center at San Jose. Including the 2024 inductees, there are 130 South Bay sports icons enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Another local honoree is 2015 inductee Jeff Garcia.

Garcia starred in football and basketball at Gilroy High. He initially played college football at Gavilan College and then moved on to San Jose State University. Garcia started three years with the Spartans and remains in the school’s all-time top-ten rankings in nearly every major passing category. As a senior, he competed in the 1994 East-West Shrine All-Star Game and was named MVP.

In professional football, Garcia initially played in the Canadian Football League and then moved on to the NFL, where he joined the San Francisco 49ers. Garcia starred with the Niners and later with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Garcia retired in 2011, with a career total of 161 touchdowns and 25,537 passing yards. Garcia appeared in four Pro Bowls.

The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame uses the phrase, “Legends who played in our backyard.” 

Guerrero joins Garcia as true Gilroy sports legends.

Amateur excellence

Gilroy gymnastics star Nola Matthews has been named the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for 2024. 

Matthews, an 18-year old who trains with Airborne Gymnastics in Santa Clara, has career highlights including a gold medal on the uneven bars at the 2023 Pan American Games. 

In junior gymnastics, Matthews had a stellar career, capped by finishing 13th in the all-around at the U.S. National Championships. During this period, Matthews competed in the vault, floor exercise, uneven bars and balance beam events.

In 2022, Matthews reached the age for Senior gymnastics and competed numerous times internationally. In the 2022 U.S. Championships, she finished fourth on the uneven bars and 13th in the all-around. 

Other highlights include winning the uneven bars in the 2022 Winter Cup, earning bronze in the all-around at the 2023 Winter Cup, and the uneven bars gold performance, along with a fourth in the all-around, at the 2023 Pan American Games. In both 2023 and 2024, she finished tenth in the uneven bars at the U.S. National Championships.

Matthews began gymnastics at age two. Due to the demands on elite gymnasts, she has been home-schooled since attending Las Animas School in Gilroy as a fourth-grader. 

Matthews has recently committed to continuing her gymnastics career at UCLA, where the prestigious program currently includes Olympian Jordan Chiles and Katelyn Ohashi, whose routines have drawn extensive social media praise.