DULUTH — The University of Minnesota Duluth athletic department has established a new award in honor of Dale “Hoagie” Haagenson, the Bulldogs’ Hall of Famer and assistant equipment manager
who died on Feb. 17 at the age of 65.
The Dale “Hoagie” Haagenson Award will be presented annually to the UMD student-athlete who displays the same qualities and character Haagenson did during his life as the longest serving volunteer in the history of UMD Athletics.
“Hoagie was a fixture on the bench, sideline or dugout of almost any UMD event,”
wrote former UMD women’s assistant soccer coach Kelly Grgas-Wheeler,
a longtime friend of “Hoagie” who now serves exclusively as UMD’s director of athletic communications and media relations. “He loved Bulldog Athletics and was here through the good years and the hard seasons. Hoagie was loyal, committed, served others and worked hard every day. But most importantly, he served others selflessly and with so much joy.”
UMD men’s hockey senior defenseman and captain Joey Pierce was the inaugural recipient on Monday during the 2026 Bulldog Awards on the UMD campus.
Pierce was particularly close to Haagenson,
having first met Hoagie while in high school playing for the Hermantown Hawks. Pierce grew up in Ely before moving to Hermantown for high school, while Haagenson was a native of Babbitt before coming to Duluth and joining the Bulldogs in 1981. Pierce often brought Hoagie to Amsoil Arena for practices and on gameday throughout his four seasons at UMD.
“This program means to much to me,” Pierce said following his last game at UMD — a loss to Michigan in an NCAA regional final in March in Albany, New York. “The guys I’ve been able to play with, I’ve become best friends with just about every single one,” Pierce said. “There’s not many places where every single day you go and show up, you know you’re doing it for something bigger than yourself. I don’t know if I’ll ever find that again. I’m so grateful for having that here in Duluth. This group is special, this program is special. I hope I left it in a better place than I found it.”
2026 Bulldogs Awards
E.L. Duce Rasmussen Scholar-Athlete winners: Mary Kate O’Brien, women’s hockey; Elizabeth VanLoon, track and field/cross country; Gabe Richardson, baseball; Riley Bodnarchuk, men’s hockey
Female Newcomer of the Year: Daphne Evans, softball
Male Newcomer of the Year: Jackson Fowlkes, men’s basketball
Female Performance of the Year: Tova Henderson, women’s hockey
Male Performance of the Year: Caleb Siwek, men’s basketball
Female Breakthrough Athletes of the Year: Madeline Guetzkow, volleyball; Elaina Shromoff, soccer
Male Breakthrough Athlete of the Year: Noah Paulson, men’s basketball
Shjon Podein Community Service Award: Emily Anderson, track and field/cross country
Bulldog Award Winner: Noah Paulson, men’s basketball
Female Athlete of the Year: Eve Gascon, women’s hockey
Male Athlete of the Year: Max Plante, men’s hockey
Dale “Hoagie” Haagenson Award: Joey Pierce, men’s hockey
Outstanding Senior Athlete Female: Myra Moorjani, women’s basketball
Outstanding Senior Athlete Male: Kyle Walljasper, football
The Golden Bone: Women’s soccer
Team Impact Award: Women’s basketball
Female Outstanding Moment of the Year: Women’s basketball
Male Outstanding Moment of the Year: Men’s basketball
Chancellors Cup: Volleyball (3.71 GPA)
Female Team of the Year: Women’s basketball
Male Team of the Year: Men’s hockey
Steve Castleberry Most Influential/Supportive Faculty Staff Community Member: Krista Twu
Bruce Bennett Service Award: Brian Haedrich, former Maroon Loon
Marsh Nelson Bulldog Award: Bob and Kim Lenihan
Cornerstone Award: Minnesota Power
Fan of the Year: Richard Gurske
Read more about all of the 2026 award winners here.
Co-host of the Bulldog Insider Podcast and college hockey reporter for the Duluth News Tribune covering the Minnesota Duluth men’s and women’s hockey programs.