The Dale \u201cHoagie\u201d 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cHoagie was a fixture on the bench, sideline or dugout of almost any UMD event,\u201d <\/p>\n
wrote former UMD women\u2019s assistant soccer coach Kelly Grgas-Wheeler,<\/a><\/p>\n a longtime friend of \u201cHoagie\u201d who now serves exclusively as UMD\u2019s director of athletic communications and media relations. \u201cHe 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.\u201d<\/p>\n UMD men\u2019s hockey senior defenseman and captain Joey Pierce was the inaugural recipient on Monday during the 2026 Bulldog Awards on the UMD campus.<\/p>\n Pierce was particularly close to Haagenson,<\/a><\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n \u201cThis program means to much to me,\u201d Pierce said following his last game at UMD \u2014 a loss to Michigan in an NCAA regional final in March in Albany, New York. \u201cThe guys I\u2019ve been able to play with, I\u2019ve become best friends with just about every single one,\u201d Pierce said. \u201cThere\u2019s not many places where every single day you go and show up, you know you\u2019re doing it for something bigger than yourself. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll ever find that again. I\u2019m 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.\u201d<\/p>\n 2026 Bulldogs Awards<\/p>\n E.L. Duce Rasmussen Scholar-Athlete winners: Mary Kate O\u2019Brien, women\u2019s hockey; Elizabeth VanLoon, track and field\/cross country; Gabe Richardson, baseball; Riley Bodnarchuk, men\u2019s hockey Read more about all of the 2026 award winners here.<\/a><\/p>\n
Female Newcomer of the Year: Daphne Evans, softball
Male Newcomer of the Year: Jackson Fowlkes, men\u2019s basketball
Female Performance of the Year: Tova Henderson, women\u2019s hockey
Male Performance of the Year: Caleb Siwek, men\u2019s basketball
Female Breakthrough Athletes of the Year: Madeline Guetzkow, volleyball; Elaina Shromoff, soccer
Male Breakthrough Athlete of the Year: Noah Paulson, men\u2019s basketball
Shjon Podein Community Service Award: Emily Anderson, track and field\/cross country
Bulldog Award Winner: Noah Paulson, men\u2019s basketball
Female Athlete of the Year: Eve Gascon, women\u2019s hockey
Male Athlete of the Year: Max Plante, men\u2019s hockey
Dale \u201cHoagie\u201d Haagenson Award: Joey Pierce, men\u2019s hockey
Outstanding Senior Athlete Female: Myra Moorjani, women\u2019s basketball
Outstanding Senior Athlete Male: Kyle Walljasper, football
The Golden Bone: Women\u2019s soccer
Team Impact Award: Women\u2019s basketball
Female Outstanding Moment of the Year: Women\u2019s basketball
Male Outstanding Moment of the Year: Men\u2019s basketball
Chancellors Cup: Volleyball (3.71 GPA)
Female Team of the Year: Women\u2019s basketball
Male Team of the Year: Men\u2019s 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<\/p>\n
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