Seven Legendary Toreros, One USD Team Honored in 2025 Hall of Fame Ceremony

SAN DIEGO – A historic day for Torero Athletics commenced in November as seven players and one team were inducted into the USD Hall of Fame Class for 2025. 

From volleyball to baseball, to men’s soccer, men’s basketball, golf and women’s tennis, six different San Diego programs were honored and inducted into the USD Chet and Marguerite Pagni Athletics Hall of Fame at the campus’ Hahn University Center. 

University of San Diego Associate Vice President and Executive Director of Athletics Kimya Massey was in attendance and was one of the speakers before the Hall of Fame Class of 2025 was introduced. 

“It's just an incredible honor to be able to make those calls and hear all your genuine thoughts and feelings in that moment,” Massey told the inductees during his opening remarks. “This is such an incredible place, and I always get the sense when I meet staff, former staff, and former athletes, of just how special this place is, and the impact that it’s had on your lives and where you are today.”

Overall, the 2025 class accumulated 12 conference championships, 28 NCAA Tournament appearances and six went on to play professionally after their USD careers. 

As the program progressed, the event’s moderator — San Diego Padres and USD public address announcer Alex Miniak — explained each of the athletes’ honors, both individually and as a team, during their time in a Toreros uniform, drawing applause and standing ovations after each player or team was announced. 

During the program, there was also a question and answer session.

One of the questions, which brought some humor to the room, was to Bartholomew, asking  where he got the nickname, “Truck,” as a men’s basketball player. 

“That nickname was given to me by a teammate my freshman year,” Bartholomew said. “We were running a 3-on-2 fast-break drill in practice, and I got the ball on the wing. I was taking the ball to the rack, and then someone came out and tried to take the charge on me, and I ran them over.

“One of the more local leaders on our team was Teddy Peterson, who looked over and told the guy, ‘You just got ran over by a Mack truck.’ The name just stuck and, and I liked it.” 

That moment and others gave the day a reflective feel as the 1992 USD men’s soccer team, along with head coach Seamus McFadden and Guillermo Jara, were inducted individually. 

“What nostalgia. Great group of kids,” McFadden said. “I've had a couple of great teams over the years. The ‘86 team, they finished with the best record in the nation with no scholarships. And then the ‘92 team gets to the final and then the 2012 team gets to the Elite Eight. They had a good run.” 

Besides the 1992 team, players and coaches were in attendance to see their teammate and coach be recognized, including USD standout Bo Karmerie, who scored 19 goals in 1986 and to set a single-season program record that still stands today. 

Jara and McFadden were the only player-coach duo to be inducted. 

The four-time All-WCC First Team honoree said his coach played a pivotal role in becoming the student he became during his time at USD. 

“He helped my dream come true,” Jara said. “He believed in me. I consider him as my mentor, my father figure. Away from soccer, he was the only person that believed in me and to be honored with him today. Just tears of joy and honor and privilege."

From the soccer pitch to the hardwood, Jennifer Wrightson-Baklenko excelled for USD volleyball during her three years on campus, during the same time that Jara and the men’s soccer team were riding their success. 

“I'm very honored. I loved my time here at USD,” Wrightson-Baklenko said as she joined her coach, Sue Snyder, in the Torero Hall of Fame. “The people were great. My teammates were amazing, my coaches were great. So I was shocked when he called me. I am grateful and humbled.”

For Alex Ching, he became the first player or coach from the USD men’s golf program to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. 

And like Wrightson-Baklenko, Ching is grateful for his time as a Torero.

“It is an honor, and it's incredible,” he said. “I had a great time here. It's a lot of fun. Good to see some old faces that I haven't seen for a long time, and just happy to be here."

Although Katarina Valkyova could not be in attendance for the induction ceremony, her impact on Torero women’s tennis and USD Athletics goes a long way. 

In her two seasons on campus, Valkyova garnered All-American honors in both seasons, while dominating alongside teammate Zuzana Lesenarova in doubles. 

Former USD women’s tennis head coach Sherri Stephens said Valkyova is more than deserving to join her Lesenarova (a 2009 inductee), in the USD Hall of Fame. 

“I think that it's really awesome,” said Stephens, who coached Valkyova. “She's a beautiful player. She's really a good player. 

“Zuzana was No. 1 in the country, and Katarina was No. 3 in the country. It was a no-brainer to put them together. They did really well together." 

One of the goals when Massey first came aboard as the Toreros’ new athletic director in 2024 was to resume inducting members into the USD Hall of Fame. 

Matusz, who still holds the San Diego baseball program’s single-season record with 163 strikeouts, was near the top of Massey’s list.

“We talked about Hall of Fame, and we talked about bringing this back,” Massey said. “I told him, ‘I want to bring this back.’ And I said, ‘You're going to be one of the first people. You're the best pitcher USD’s ever had.’ We talked about that and how we came up with that selection. Now here we are, just under two years later, and Brian is going into the Hall of Fame.”

Although Matusz passed away earlier this year, former USD baseball head coach Rich Hill, who coached Matusz, made a video about his reaction to Matusz earning induction that was played at the ceremony. 

“What Brian Matusz meant to the University of San Diego and to me personally, I really can’t put it into words,” Hill said in the video. “Brian arrived on campus, as really, our first big-time recruit. I (compare) Brian to a guy like Patrick Ewing that went to Georgetown and put them on the map, Doug Flutie when he went to Boston College and, most recently, Caitlin Clark and what she meant to Iowa basketball.” 

Although this is USD’s first Hall of Fame Class since 2019, the process of inducting more players and teams will happen more consistently. 

“There's a lot more athletes that are going to be inducted over the years,” said men’s soccer coach Brian Quinn, who is part of the USD Hall of Fame selection committee. “The fact that we haven't had anyone for six years, this is the beginning of the next generation of USD athletes that are going to be inducted, and every single one of them that deserves it.” 

2025 USD ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME CLASS

• Bob Bartholomew, Men’s Basketball, 1977-81
• Alex Ching, Men’s Golf, 2008-12
• Guillermo Jara, Men’s Soccer, 1992-95
• 1992 USD Men’s Soccer Team 
• Seamus McFadden, Men’s Soccer, 1980-2017 
• Brian Matusz, Baseball, 2006-08 (posthumous)
• Katarina Valkova, Women’s Tennis, 1999-00
• Jennifer Wrightson-Baklenko, Volleyball, 1992-94