Senior Salute: Dylan Thoerner, Pierre Crockrell II, and Dean Keeler

Prior to UC Irvine's home finale against Cal Poly (Mar. 7), graduate student Dylan Thoerner as well as fifth year seniors Pierre Crockrell II and Dean Keeler will be honored for their contributions to the program.

All three seniors reflect on their time within the program…

Dylan Thoerner

My time here in the UC Irvine program has been amazing. The players and staff welcomed me in and made me feel like a part of the team from the moment I joined. I'm grateful they gave me this opportunity to be a contributing part of this winning culture. I'm thankful to finish my collegiate career with such a special group.

Pierre Crockrell II

I would like to thank UC Irvine and the basketball coaching staff for the giving me the opportunity to play basketball and obtain my degree in Sociology. In the last two years, I have experienced many accomplishments and memories that will last a lifetime. From being conference champions in the 2022-2023 season to having the opportunity this summer to play in the Jones Cup in Taiwan bringing home the gold. I also enjoyed the chance to give back to the community by working the summer camps. I had a great time with the kids - teaching them skills and interacting with them. 

It has also been a pleasure meeting UCI alumni as well as people in the community and creating lasting relationships. I would like to thank EVERYONE who supported me during my time at UC Irvine, my family, my teammates, the coaches, and the training staff. I will never forget my experiences and the friendships created at UC Irvine. Go Anteaters! 

Dean Keeler

My experiences at UC Irvine as a part of the men's basketball team have been everything I could have asked for as a college athlete. I couldn’t be more appreciative of the opportunity to play in a championship program while pursuing my degree in Public Health Policy. I would like to thank my teammates, coaches, support staff, and everyone else in the UCI community who has impacted my career here. Thank you to everyone who has pushed me to be a better person both on and off the court. The friendships and memories I have made as an Anteater will stay with me for my whole life. Finally, I want to say thank you to my family. Their continued support has pushed me to follow my dreams in my basketball career.

I have been lucky to accomplish and experience many things here at UC Irvine. Some of the accomplishments I got to share with my team are being conference champions in the 2019-2020 and 2022-2023 seasons and winning the Jones Cup in Taiwan. Without the support of everyone in the UCI community, these accomplishments would have never been a possibility. 

These last five years will leave a lasting impact on the rest of my life. My time spent here felt like it flew by in a blink of an eye. However, looking back, it was filled with so many happy and exciting memories both on and off the court. The team that I went to battle with every day and night on the court couldn’t be a better group of guys. The time spent at UC Irvine and on the road has brought me closer to the team than I could have ever imagined. All of the teammates, coaches, and support staff that have been a part of the program during my time here have become a second family to me that I will never forget. I could go on forever about everything that has created this amazing experience but I feel like I will end it here. Thank you so much to the Anteater community for allowing me to be a part of this championship program.