A TEAM TO REMEMBER—The 1984 Simi Valley High boys’ basketball team, nicknamed the Rat Pack by head coach Bob Hawking, captured the program’s first outright Marmonte League title. This squad is considered the first great team in school history. At right, the Pioneers meet for dinner at Larsen’s Grill on June 21 in Simi Valley. Photos courtesy of Marty Wilson and Christian Aurand
Simi Valley is a basketball town.
Hang it from the rafters, put it on the scoreboard and cut down the nets—the Rat Pack insists on it.
Bob Hawking started building a future empire’s foundation when he arrived at Simi Valley High in 1974. His 1984 boys’ basketball team cemented the sport’s legacy at the school.
The 1984 Simi Valley team—spearheaded by Hawk, the head coach; Marty Wilson, the Ventura County Player of the Year and Marmonte League MVP; Geraud Moncuré, an all-league standout guard; and Christian Aurand, Mr. Pioneer— celebrated its 40th anniversary. Eight of the nine living players rekindled their lifelong bond and returned home for a memorable reunion June 21 and 22.
“It’s a special group,” Wilson said.
The Pioneers meet for dinner at Larsen’s Grill on June 21 in Simi Valley.
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The Rat Pack—the affectionate nickname Hawk gave to his players—notched a 23-3 overall record and captured the team’s first outright Marmonte championship with an 11-1 mark in 1984.
Hawk reminded his players of one message he would repeat throughout the season: “Few weeks to work but a lifetime to remember.”
His words resonate today.
The Pioneers—without a player taller than 6-foot-3 and operating a relentless, ferocious defense that remains a trademark of all modern Pioneer squads—care about more than just the wins.
“We genuinely love each other,” Moncuré said.
In addition to Wilson, Moncuré and Aurand, fellow players Dave “Mojo” Motylewski, Jerry Hayes, Cary Pittard, Sean Harrigan and Ken Johnson attended the reunion with former Simi Valley cheerleaders Monique Noisette-Palmer, Dawn Chandler, Giana Baughman, Kim Kaples, Tina Tedesco, Tracy Hill, Mary Capuano and Sharon Zimmer.
Hawking and his wife, Jeannie, trekked south from their home in South Lake Tahoe.
Pat Laughlin, who lives in the Pacific Northwest, and assistant coach Dean Bradshaw could not attend. Steve Johnson, a 1984 assistant who directed Newbury Park to two Marmonte crowns in his 15 seasons leading the Panthers, joined Hawking and the players for a June 21 dinner at Larsen’s Grill in Simi Valley.
BACK IN THE DAY—Marty Wilson, the 1984 Ventura County Player of the Year for the Simi Valley High boys’ basketball team, went on to play and coach for the Pepperdine Waves. Courtesy of Pepperdine Athletics
Don Miller, a three-year member of the Pioneer program, passed away in 2012, but Miller’s father and sister participated in the reunion.
“It’s so much bigger than basketball,” Aurand said.
• • •
The Rat Pack reveres Hawk to this day.
“He’s a great guy,” Aurand said. “He’s like a dad to all of us. Such an inspirational and motivational guy.”
Aurand would go on to become Simi Valley’s all-time basketball wins leader. He notched a 250-95 record as Pioneers’ head coach in 12 seasons from 1999 to 2011.
Hawking finished 230-119 and led Simi Valley to its first, and to date only, CIF-Southern Section championship in 1988.
With apologizes to Aurand, Dean Bradshaw (215-81 record from 1988 to 1999), Dean’s son Ryan Bradshaw (98–113 from 2013 to 2021), John Dobbert (80-44 from 1963 to 1968), Alex Kamberian (22-5 in 2021-22) and current skipper Craig Griffin (37-21), Hawk is the best coach in Simi Valley history.
“He was like a father figure to me,” Moncuré said of Hawk. “He let me use his car to go to prom.
“I lived on every sentence that came out of Coach’s mouth. He inspired us. At that time, I probably needed a little bit more discipline, and he brought that to me. He believed in us, and we always knew he was one of us. Even though he was a coach, he was one of us.”
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BASKETBALL LEGEND—Marty Wilson, a standout player for the Pepperdine men’s basketball team, was the Waves’ head coach from 2011 to 2018. Current Oaks Christian High boys’ basketball head coach Mark Amaral is seated third from left. Courtesy of Pepperdine Athletics
The 1983 Simi Valley outfit was favored to win the Marmonte but sputtered to fifth place in the league standings.
Wilson would be the lone varsity returner from the 1983 roster, but the ’84 crew was on a mission to hang a banner in the gym. The Pioneers sharpened their skills during three summer league circuits: Tuesdays at Cleveland High, Wednesdays at Crespi and Thursdays at Ventura.
“In summer, we were in midseason form already,” Moncuré said. “We were locked in.”
Hawking, 76 years old but as sharp as Washington crossing the Delaware, remembers this team with vivid detail.
“They were unique in a lot of ways. They weren’t very tall. We weren’t super athletic,” Hawking said. “Marty was a good athlete. Geraud was a good athlete. We weren’t knocking the socks off people athletically. We didn’t shoot the ball great. We didn’t have anybody who shot it consistently game in and game out, and certainly not from deep.
“What they did was defending their butts off and rebounding really well for a small team. We didn’t foul much even though we were aggressive defensively, and they were in exceptional physical condition. . . . Our goal was to shoot as many zero-footers as we could. We pressed for 32 minutes, and if a game went into overtime, we’d press for five more.”
The squad had talented dudes, for sure.
Moncuré played basketball at Los Angeles Valley College, Moorpark College and Chico State.
Motylewski suited up at the University of Redlands.
Wilson starred at Pepperdine. He was fifth on the Waves in career assists ladder when he graduated.
“Marty was such a good player and a freak of an athlete,” Aurand said. “His athleticism was off the charts. He was like Clyde Drexler: old school, athletic, could jump out of the gym. And he was mean. You did not want to play against Marty.”
THE RAT PACK—The 1984 Simi Valley High boys’ basketball team photo. Courtesy of Christian Aurand
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Simi Valley clinched the Marmonte title with a road win at Westlake.
After the game, the Pioneers tried to cut down the nets, just like hoops stars do during the NCAA Tournament.
“Westlake wouldn’t let us,” Wilson said. “A brawl almost broke out.”
“They didn’t take too kind to it,” Aurand said. “One of our guys was on the rim getting ready to cut it. One of their guys tackled him. There was a huge brawl after the game. I remember us trying to say, ‘Hey, we brought extra nets!’ It turned into a crazy scene. I could see why they were probably a little bit upset.”
The Pioneers cut down the nets during a handful of preseason tournaments . . . on neutral courts.
What’s Hawk’s favorite memory of the 1984 season?
He laughed.
“It’s a book of ‘War and Peace,’” the coach said. “You’d be writing until you had gray hair.”
• • •
The Rat Pack thrived off the court. The Pioneers built careers and raised families. Life goes on for legends, too.
Wilson, who moved to Dallas last summer, was Pepperdine’s head coach for seven seasons. He made assistant coaching stops at UC Santa Barbara, Utah and Cal. (Editor’s note: The writer was 18 years old when he met Wilson at a UCSB open tryout for potential walk-on basketball players circa 2000. That’s a story for another day, folks.)
Wilson and his wife, Mayra, are expecting their first grandchild next month from their daughter, Jessica. Marty and Mayra’s son, Jalon, was a student manager for the Waves. Everyone in the family graduated from Pepperdine.
Moncuré, who lives in Woodland Hills, is a sports anchor and reporter for FOX 11 in Los Angeles.
“Jim Hill is the reason I became a sportscaster,” Moncuré said.
After graduating from Chico State in 1990, Moncuré got his first gig working in Yuma, Arizona. He jumped into the L.A. market in 1999 with an assist from former Calabasas resident Fred Roggin. “Fred is responsible for getting me into the market. I’ll always be grateful to Fred for that,” the Simi Valley legend said.
Moncuré grinded for 20 years to try to return to Los Angeles when he joined FOX 11 three years ago.
The Pioneer’s brother, Brian, who briefly played prep basketball, is also a Simi Valley grad. His youngest brother, Greg, played soccer at Thousand Oaks. His sister, Cherise, played soccer and basketball at Camarillo. His youngest sister, Monique, attended La Reina. Moncuré’s parents have lived in Santa Rosa Valley since 1981.
Bob and Jeannie Hawking’s three children all found success in athletics: Kristin ran track and field and cross country at Arizona State, and the Dixon Simi Valley-Esperanza prep star was a CIF champion in the 1,600-meter run; younger son Quinn walked on the UCLA men’s basketball team after breaking single season scoring records his senior year at Anaheim High, while adding stops at Sonora and El Dorado high schools; and their older son Butch, a 1988 Simi Valley CIF champion, excelled on the hardwood for the Air Force Academy.
Hawk, who retired in 2015, got his first coaching job assisting at the now-defunct Pater Noster High of Los Angeles in 1970 after playing at Pierce College (for Louisville great Denny Crum) and Cal State Northridge. He coached the South Tahoe High freshman team in 2019. He’s staying active teaching classes at Lake Tahoe Community College, and leading individual personal training sessions.
Hawk won’t rule out coaching again.
• • •
Appelbaum
Few weeks to work but a lifetime to remember.
The Pioneers excelled on the hardwood, and they remain friends 40 years later.
“It’s almost like no time has gone by,” Moncuré said. “Cary Pittard, he moved to Utah after graduation. We hadn’t seen him in 40 years.”
The Rat Pack set a new standard at Simi Valley.
Yes, Simi Valley’s football team won its first CIF championship in 2023, and the school has been around for 104 years.
It’s still a basketball town until someone turns off the lights in Tom Harmon Gym for good.
“Butch Hawking told me, ‘You were the team that set the tone for future programs,” Moncuré said.
Bob Hawking’s words echo today.
“You got a few weeks to work but a lifetime to remember,” the coach said. “We’re 40 years into that lifetime now. Everything looks like a marathon when we’re 20 and 30. It seems like a long way away. It goes so quick.”
Appelbaum has been sports editor at the Acorn Newspapers since 2012. Follow him on X @EliavAppelbaum
IN A NUTSHELL
The 1984 Simi Valley High boys’ basketball team went 23-3 overall and captured the program’s first outright Marmonte League championship. This team, which celebrated its 40th-year reunion June 21-22, set the stage for the 1988 CIF Pioneer title squad.
Head coach
• Bob Hawking
Players
• Marty Wilson
• Geraud Moncuré
• Christian Aurand
• Pat Laughlin
• Dave Motylewski
• Jerry Hayes
• Don Miller
• Cary Pittard
• Sean Harrigan
• Ken Johnson