17 inducted in Merced High’s third Hall of Fame class

Don Bragonier, a member of Merced High’s Class of 1962, told the story about going to a football game while he attended Cal Western in San Diego. As he watched his team take on the University of Puget Sound, over and over again he heard the same name announced the P.A. system: Al Roberts.

Bragonier remembered an underclassman named Al Roberts from his days in Merced. He checked the program and, sure enough, it was the same Al Roberts with whom he went to school. Bragonier sought out Roberts after that game and that old Bears took a few minutes to catch up.

At Saturday night’s third annual Merced High Hall of Fame induction dinner, Bragonier, father of 2017 inductee Jake Bragonier, bumped into Roberts in the Yosemite Hall at the Merced County Fairgrounds.

“I asked him, ‘Do you remember the last time we saw each other?’” said Bragonier. “He said, ‘Yeah, it was about 50 years ago in a locker room in San Diego.’”

That’s one story.

About a thousand others were shared Saturday as past and present Bears, many wearing the orange blazers signifying Hall of Fame membership, came together to induct 17 new members in the school’s athletic Hall of Fame.

Inducted this year were, in alphabetical order, Mark Bauer (baseball, Class of 1980), Bragonier (tennis, ’91), Mike Girardi (basketball, ’83), Eddie Guerrero (basketball, ’76), Ronnie Hoyt (golf, ’67), Matt Kennedy (water polo, swimming, ’83), Greg McKinstry (track, cross country, coach, ’78), Lou Mondo (football, ’53), Shelly Nieto Luchini (track, cross country, ’81), Johnny Olivarez (baseball), Fran Oneto (baseball, basketball, ’48), Joe Ovatt (football, ’51), Lori Powell Santi (volleyball, basketball, softball, ’80), Roberts (football, ’63), Mark Slaton (football, basketball, track, ’76), Katie Tenenbaum (water polo, swimming, ’95), Anthony Volsan (football, track, ’93).

With about 600 guests in attendance at the Yosemite Hall at the Merced County Fairgrounds, Bears young and old came together for dinner – prime rib, potatoes au gratin, butternut squash, salad – to raise money for the Merced High Athletic Foundation, which hopes to build a sparkling, on-campus football stadium in the coming years.

“Great turnout, I love it, it was fun,” said Merced athletic director Paul Hogue, Merced High Class of 1986. “I still advertise, I’m still worried that I’m not going to get 600-plus people here, but it always ends up, the last three years, 600-plus.”

This story was originally published March 26, 2017 at 6:27 PM with the headline "17 inducted in Merced High’s third Hall of Fame class."