Former Francis Marion University baseball outfielder Anthony“Chico” Lombardo became the 34th member of the FMUAthletic Hall of Fame when he was inducted during Homecomingactivities on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2009.
A native of Chattanooga, Tenn., Lombardo playedtwo seasons at Francis Marion (1978 and 1979) after transferringfrom Motlow State Community College in Tennessee.
He earned a B.S. degree in sociology from Francis Marion in1979, and later did post-graduate work at Winthrop University.
Lombardo now resides in Shelby, N.C., with his wife and twochildren, and he is entering his 18th season as head baseball coachat Limestone College.
As a senior at Francis Marion in 1979, he batted .411 with 49runs scored in only 38 games. He set Patriot single-seasonrecords for batting average, base hits (62), and runs batted in(46). He also compiled 11 doubles, four triples, and one homerun, while stealing 50 bases in 54 attempts. He was named tothe NAIA District Six All-District Team, while earning All-State,All-Area, and honorable mention All-America recognition. Hehelped Francis Marion to a 31-7 record, which at the time, was thebest in the program’s history.
During the 1978 campaign, he earned All-District honors whilehitting .344 with 37 runs scored, seven doubles, one triple, 24RBIs, and 30 stolen bases in 34 attempts.
His career totals as a Patriot include a .377 average, 86 runsand 70 RBIs in only 76 games, with 80 stolen bases in 88attempts.
He later played one season in the Cincinnati Reds organization,before entering the coaching profession. When he took overthe head coaching reigns at Mars Hill College, he became theyoungest head coach in the nation. After two years at MarsHill, he was an assistant coach at Winthrop College for fiveseasons, and then moved to Limestone in 1992.
In 2005, he guided Limestone to its first Carolinas-VirginiaAthletic Conference championship and was named CVAC Coach of theYear. While with the Saints, he also earned NAIA District SixCoach of the Year honors in 1994, a Louisville Slugger Award forExcellence in Coaching in 1997, and state Coach of the Yearrecognition in 1997, while compiling a 435-416 record.
