Longtime PCC coach Robinson dies at 84

Legendary coach Ron Robinson, who led the Pasadena City College baseball team to its last state championship in 1967, died Monday after a long battle with cancer. He was 84. 

Robinson coached the Lancers from 1961 to 1974 and led them to a 22-13 record in 1967 when they won the Southern California regional title by beating Citrus. Then they took a three-game series against Sacramento City College to win the state championship. That team was led by Darrell Evans, who went on to hit 414 home runs in 21 major-league seasons. 

In the final game of the state championship series, reliever Jerry Ashcraft pitched a scoreless ninth inning to preserve a 2-1 victory. 

Evans was the Lancers' third baseman and captain and led the team with a .400-plus batting average. 

Robinson was more than a coach. He was a mentor and a father-like figure. 

Robinson's wife, Donna, to whom he was married for 61 years, recalled how much he meant to his players. 

"He was a man of integrity," she said. "The kids he coached knew where he stood on things. He'd let you know if he was unhappy, but he still did it in a way that showed that he liked you or loved you. 

"He's received many letters from former players thanking him for how he straightened out their lives." 

Robinson, an Altadena resident, led the Lancers to five Western State Conference baseball titles (1963, 1965-67, 1972). The 1972 team is the school's last to win a baseball conference championship.