Manchester's Ryan Day, coach McDonnell highlight UNH athletics 2026 hall of fame class
· Yahoo Sports
The University of New Hampshire Department of Athletics 2026 Hall of Fame class was announced on Monday.
Visit newsbetting.club for more information.
The class, which will be inducted as part of Homecoming Weekend on Sunday, Oct. 4, consists of former football quarterback Ryan Day, former football coach Sean McDonnell, former men’s soccer player Josh Bauer, former cross-country and track runner Rosie Donegan, former skier Aileen Farrell Terrien, former swimmer Amy Perrault Perkins, former women’s hockey player Carisa Zaban Wahlig and former cross-country and track coach Jim Boulanger.
Day, a Manchester native and 2002 UNH graduate, was a three-year starter and served as team captain his senior year in 2001. A Manchester Central graduate, Day set nine records while quarterbacking the Wildcats: career completions (653), touchdown passes (53), completion percentage (59.9) and total offense (8,492 yards).
Day is now entering his ninth season as the head football coach at Ohio State University, leading the Buckeyes to the national championship in 2024.
McDonnell, a 1979 UNH graduate who coached the football team from 1999-2021, is the Coastal Athletic Association’s active leader in conference victories (100) and ranks second all-time in program history in career wins (157).
A two-time Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year (2005, 2014), McDonnell is on the ballot for the 2027 National Football Foundation (NFF) College Football Hall of Fame.
Bauer, a 2020 UNH graduate from Bedford, was a United Soccer Coaches First Team All-American and a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist as a senior in 2019. The Wildcats logged 12 shutouts and allowed 0.54 goals against per game that 2019 campaign.
Bauer was a two-time ECAC and America East Conference defender of the year and helped the Wildcats win conference titles in 2018 and 2019.
Donegan was the first UNH athlete to win the America East Woman of the Year award in 2017 and was also an NCAA Woman of the Year top 30 honoree that year. The Melbourne, Australia, native was a three-time All-American while at UNH. She still holds the program indoor track and field record in the 5,000-meter run (16 minutes, 17.12 seconds).
Farrell Terrien, a 2010 graduate from Ottawa, Ontario, earned All-America first team honors in the slalom and second team honors in the giant slalom in 2009. She was named the team’s MVP in 2009 as its top EISA point scorer.
Perrault Perkins, a 2011 graduate from Kirkland Lake, Ontario, was the 2010 America East Swimmer of the Year and the conference’s rookie of the year in 2008. She still holds the program record in the 100 backstroke (54.35 seconds).
A 2000 UNH graduate, Zaban Wahlig is tied for the UNH program record in assists (145) and ranks second all-time in goals (118). A former head women’s hockey coach at Brown University, Zaban Wahlig led the Wildcats in both assists and points all four seasons. She was a Top-3 finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award in 2000.
Boulanger, a 1975 graduate from Dover, was the men’s and women’s cross-country and track and field coach for 37 seasons (1982-2021).
Boulanger won a total 21 America East Coach of the Year awards and he led the Wildcats men’s teams to a combined 15 conference titles.
Over his tenure, Boulanger coached three All-Americans, including two-time Olympian and UNH Athletics Hall of Famer Elle Purrier.