Class of 1986 Returns for Homecoming; Gathering to Honor Coach Marilyn Sepulveda

ALAMOGORDO — Members of the Alamogordo High School Class of 1986 are back in town this homecoming weekend for their 40-year reunion.

Classmates have a full slate of activities planned, with plenty of reminders of their days as Tigers. For many, the weekend is a chance to trade old stories and reconnect with friends they have not seen in decades.

A gathering for Marilyn Coach Sepulveda

One event reaches well beyond a single graduating class. Alumni from the Class of 1986, other classes and other former athletes will meet at noon at the 19th Hole restaurant and bar to celebrate the life and accomplishments of Marilyn Sepulveda. The award-winning cross country and track and field coach mentored many of them.

The celebration and remembrance is open to the public. Former students, former athletes and anyone who knew Sepulveda are invited to attend.

Sepulveda died of cancer in 1989, three years after the Class of 1986 graduated. In 2025, the New Mexico High School Coaches Association inducted her posthumously into its Hall of Honor.

A pioneer for girls' athletics

Born Marilyn McDonald on Jan. 28, 1945, in Telluride, Colorado, Sepulveda began her career in Alamogordo in 1965. She started as a physical education instructor, then moved into English and coaching.

She became the first woman in New Mexico to coach both boys' and girls' cross country, while also leading the girls' track and field program. That team won its first district title in 1975, a year after it was formed, and finished second at state.

Under Sepulveda, the girls' track and field program won 14 district championships and one state title. It also earned four state runner-up trophies and two third-place finishes. Her 1982 cross country team placed third at the state championships.

The honors followed. In 1981, she became the first Alamogordo coach named Girls Track and Field Coach of the Year by the New Mexico High School Coaches Association. She also earned the association's Level IV Coaching Milestone ring.

On July 31, 1987, she led a group of coaches in founding the New Mexico Track and Cross Country Coaches Association. She served as its first president until her death and remains on its Presidents Wall of Fame. That same year, she was appointed vice chair for Region 8 of the National High School Coaches Association.

Coaching ran in the family. Her husband, Bob Sepulveda will be present at the event, won five state championships as Alamogordo's boys track and field coach, and both are on the Alamogordo Tiger Wall of Fame. Their son, Rene Sepulveda, spent nearly two decades coaching in the NCAA Big 12 Conference sending multiple athletes to Olympic training and winning national awards. He will also be onsite to discuss his mother’s history and impact on generations of students. 

If you go

• What: Celebration and remembrance of Coach Marilyn Sepulveda
• When: Noon today!
• Where: 19th Hole restaurant and bar, Alamogordo
• Who: Open to the public. Former students and athletes are encouraged to attend.

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