UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
2010-11 STATE OF ATHLETICS
Dear Friends of UNH, The 2010-11 academic year was simultaneously uplifting and challenging for the athletic department. Our intercollegiate programs once again maintained a highly competitive standard and the student-athletes excelled in their classrooms. We won a number of league championships, competed in NCAA postseason play and brought much recognition to the University and state. The year has been a challenge due to the nature of the national economy and the unprecedented budgetary cutbacks from our state. Similar to the rest of the University, the athletics department is working diligently to become even more efficient, extend already lean resources and carry on the high standard of excellence that has been established over the years. Our staff, coaches and student-athletes will utilize every single measure available to them and will not compromise what we have worked so hard to achieve. UNH remains one of the very best public, land-grant institutions in the nation, recognized for its undergraduate teaching, research and breadth of student experience. Intercollegiate athletics embodies all the same attributes, and our aggregate success is in synch with the institution at large. The faculty, administration, deans and advisors all deserve recognition for their commitment and hard work in helping the student-athletes realize their accomplishments in the classroom. Equally important, all of our programs have perpetuated broad-based success, many attaining national prominence. UNH athletics is once again among the very best in the country, as evidenced by our placement in the Division I Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings. Our department ranked highest in the America East Conference and among all Football Championship Subdivision public schools, second highest among all CAA schools, third best in New England (Connecticut-No. 44, Boston College No. 64) and 76th among the 370 D-I programs in the nation. No other D-I institution achieves these results with similar lean resources. This annual report is meant to capture the essence of the just-completed year and to illustrate the challenges that lie ahead. You will find comprehensive breakdowns on the athletic and academic exploits of our student-athletes and teams, our department’s philosophy and culture, the financial picture, a look at our ongoing, aggressive fundraising efforts and, in conclusion, specific team-by-team appendices. We are proud to represent this fine University, and you can rest assured that when we venture from our borders, we do so with a commitment to excellence. Second place is never satisfactory, and our entire staff will re-dedicate themselves to improving on last year’s success. On behalf of our staff, coaches and all of the fine student-athletes, we thank you for your interest and, most of all, your support.
Sincerely,
Marty Scarano Athletics Director
ACADEMICS
UNH student-athletes are provided with an all-encompassing academic support system that prepares them for the rigors of their college career as incoming freshmen and supplies them with the resources necessary for achieving and sustaining success during their years on campus. The academic support staff achieves its mission in four ways: providing general academic information, monitoring academic progress, arranging tutorial services and referring student-athletes to support offices on campus. General academic information – Located conveniently on the main floor of the Field House, the academic support offices contain information pertaining to NCAA eligibility information, additional academic resources on campus and class registration information. Monitoring academic progress – The academic support staff communicates with professors, academic advisors and coaches on an ongoing basis. Progress reports for all first-year student-athletes are gathered during the midpoint of the fall and spring semesters, with the professors evaluating the student-athletes on performance, attendance and class participation. Student-athletes have group and individual meetings with the academic support staff throughout the year in order to monitor progress and offer additional academic strategies. Tutorial program – All student-athletes are eligible for free tutorial assistance through the athletic department. The tutors are University undergraduate and graduate students who have been recommended by their professors to mentor in specific subject areas. Student-athletes are able to arrange tutoring sessions that accommodate their own hectic schedules. Individual and small study groups are available. Academic center – The student-athlete academic center, located in the Field House, is equipped with new computers, study carrels and study tables. It is a quiet place for student-athletes to complete academic work before and after practice. The benefits of the academic support system were readily evident in 2010-11. UNH ranked second nationally among all public institutions with a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 95 percent for its student-athletes, which led both the America East Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association. The field hockey, women’s gymnastics, men’s soccer, women’s ice hockey, women’s skiing, women’s track and women’s volleyball teams all posted perfect 100 percent GSRs while the football team notched a 95 percent mark, tied for fifth-best in the nation in its respective sport. Senior men’s soccer player Colin O’Donnell and women’s track and field graduate student Rita Ciambra were each recipients of the America East Scholar-Athlete award in their respective sports. Four Wildcat teams were honored by the NCAA for multiyear Academic Progress Rates (APRs) in the top 10 percent of all teams in their respective sports: football, men’s indoor track and field, men’s outdoor track and field and women’s gymnastics. The UNH football team represented the only Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) program from a public school in the country to receive an APR Public Recognition Award, as well as one of only 12 FCS schools nationally and one of just four non-Ivy League schools feted. UNH had the highest number of honorees on the 2010 America East Fall Academic Honor Roll with 95 representatives en route to a second-place finish in the 2010-11 America East Academic Cup for the third time in four years. Both the women’s indoor track team and women’s outdoor track team registered the highest grade-point averages in their respective sports. Additionally, the women’s hockey team boasted an all-time best 13 student-athletes on the Women’s Hockey East Association All-Academic Team.
ATHLETICS
The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics announced that the University of New Hampshire ranked 76th out of more than 370 Division I schools in the Learfield Sports NACDA Directors’ Cup final standings. With 252.50 total points, UNH ranked highest in the America East Conference and among all Football Championship Subdivision public schools, second highest among all CAA schools and third highest in New England (Connecticut-No. 44, Boston College No. 64).
FALL HIGHLIGHTS
• The women’s cross country team ran to a second-place finish at the America East Championships, led by a sixth overall finish from senior Sydney Fitzpatrick. • Whitney Frates of the field hockey team was selected to the 2010 Longstreth/NFHCA Division I All-America Second Team, while head coach Robin Balducci and her staff was recognized as the America East Coaching Staff of the Year after claiming the regular season championship. • The football team qualified for NCAA FCS Postseason for the seventh consecutive year, the longest streak in the nation, and stretched consecutive weeks ranked in Top 25 to 97 in a row, tops in the CAA. • Men’s soccer shut out three teams consecutively in the conference tournament, becoming the first team to achieve this feat, and earned a trip to the title game. Senior Colin O’Donnell was named the America East Goalkeeper of the Year. • Senior Sara Heldman of the volleyball team became the first America East student-athlete to earn both Setter of the Year and Defensive Specialist of the Year honors. • The field hockey and men’s soccer teams both reached the conference title game but came just shy of earning a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Field hockey fell to Albany in overtime while men’s soccer lost to UMBC in penalty kicks after 110 minutes of shutout soccer.
WINTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Men’s basketball head coach Bill Herrion earned his 300th career coaching victory, claiming a 65-60 victory over Colgate (Dec. 4), becoming just the 72nd active head coach and 284th all-time to reach the milestone. • Gymnastics head coach Gail Goodspeed registered her 500th career coaching victory at UNH during the EAGL Championship at George Washington University. • Men’s ice hockey made its 21st appearance in the NCAA tournament. The ‘Cats have been to the postseason in 10straight seasons and 14 of the last 15 years. • Matt Di Girolamo became just the sixth player in program history to register 1,000 saves in a single season. He ended the season with 1,145 saves, the most by a UNH goalie in program history, and ranked first in the nation in that category with 60 more stops than his next closest competition. • Paul Thompson added first team All America to an already lengthy list of 2010-11 accomplishments, including 201011 Hobey Baker top 10 finalist and 2010 Hockey East Player of the Year. • Women’s ice hockey senior goaltender Kayley Herman made a school-record 52 saves, including 21 in the third period, in a 4-2 road win over Boston university. • Sophomore Matthew Guarente led men’s indoor track & field with a conference title in the high jump. • Graduate student Rita Ciambra won her third-consecutive indoor conference title in the pole vault, while senior Megan Donahue claimed the 500m. • Junior men’s alpine skier Zach Clayton earned All-America First Team honors with a third-place finish in slalom and Second Team with a 10th-place finish in giant slalom at the NCAA Championships. • UNH won the ECAC Swimming and Diving Championships for the first time since 2005, as the Wildcats totaled 11 ECAC winners, led by senior Amy Perrault who contributed to six first-place finishes and helped the ‘Cats break five records at the ECAC Championships, earning the Women’s Swimmer of the Meet award. • Women’s swimming and diving took home Coaching Staff of the Year honors at both the America East Championships and ECAC Championships.
SPRING HIGHLIGHTS
• Men’s outdoor track & field senior Mike Simon ended his impressive throwing career in the javelin by with a fourth straight conference title and a first-place finish in the College Division at the prestigious Penn Relays. • Women’s outdoor track & field won the New England Championships for the first time in program history. • Graduate student Rita Ciambra won her third conference title in the pole vault with a cleared height of 4.15m, which broke both a school record as well as a conference championship record.
FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT
This was another challenging financial year for Athletics. We continue to work hard on generating additional external revenues but have struggled to consistently meet increasing targets in the current economy. The Athletic Department continues to operate as efficiently as possible, but our three largest expense items Athletic Scholarships, Salaries and Benefits, and Facility Maintenance comprise almost 70% of our total expense budget. Athletic scholarship costs increase as tuition increases, salaries and benefits are primarily market driven and facility costs are institutionally administered– items the department has little control over. The outlook for FY12 is worse as the State of NH cut funding to the University System by 45% and UNH responded to the decreased State funding through a series of budget reductions at all levels including Athletics. Some of the strategies the Athletics Department will be taking to address the FY12 budget cuts include: • Freezing vacant positions • Freezing salaries • Freezing current scholarship awards • Restricting team travel to the Northeast Corridor • Restricting number of contests • Restructured ticket pricing • Additional game guarantee contests • Increased dependence on annual funds to contribute towards operating expenses Our $25 million budget is funded 30% by generated revenues (ticket sales, NCAA/Conference Distributions, Sports Camps, Royalties/Sponsorships, Annual Gifts, Endowment Income, miscellaneous revenues) and 70% from allocated revenues (Institutional support and Student Fees). Our generated revenues as a percentage of total athletic expenses is slightly higher than the average for FCS schools and our athletic expenses are lower than most FSC institutions. UNH’s athletics budget comprises approximately 4% of the average institutional budget while the great majority of FCS departments comprise 5% of the total institutional budget. In summation, UNH athletics is a very efficient and lean organization. In this past fiscal year, the Athletics Development office raised over $502,000 in current use support through our athletics annual giving program: The Wildcat Fund. Through mail, phone and personal solicitations, a total of 3,217 donors directed their individual gifts to any of our 15 Friends groups (providing sport-specific operational support), athletic scholarships (helping to offset the $8M annual cost to support 330 student –athletes who receive some form of athleticscholarships) and the athletic director’s priorities (supporting Department-wide initiatives). The average gift size was $156.00 and over 50% of our athletic donors are UNH alumni. The remaining donors are parents, friends, faculty and staff, current students, corporations and foundations. In the area of athletic major gifts, the Athletics Development office worked with our loyal donors to establish nine (9) new named endowed funds in this fiscal year with a combined total commitment of $423,000. Endowments can be established to fund athletic scholarships or can provide operational funding to a particular team or program. An endowed athletic fund provides a permanent source of income for the Athletic Department and gifts to an endowed fund are invested, with a percentage (currently 4 percent of the 12-month moving average) of the income growth supporting a specific program or area, as directed by the donor(s). The remaining income is invested into the endowment, ensuring that the value of the investment grows forever. The minimum gift amount necessary to establish a new endowment at UNH is $50,000 and this amount can be paid all at once or in payments (three to five years). Donors are encouraged to name endowed funds in a way that is meaningful to them. Currently, there are 87 individual named athletic endowed funds. In addition to annual giving and major gifts, the Athletics Development team supports our athletic teams and our coaching staff with special events such as alumni reunions, Friends group functions/gatherings, golf tournaments and more. In addition, the Cat Tracker publication has increased its “reach” in this fiscal year and three issues were mailed to close to 12,000 households during the fall (October 2010, winter (January 2011) and spring (June 2011). The Cat Tracker serves as a key communication tool for our athletic community, highlighting “gifts at work” and alumni and friends events. The publication is sent to all former UNH student-athletes and any individual who has ever made a gift to any area within the Athletic Department. Overall, an increase in fundraised dollars is an essential component in establishing a sustainable financial model and it is the loyal support of alumni, parents, family and friends that enable our student athletes to honor our rich traditions represent our institution with pride and pursue excellence – both athletically and academically. To make a secure gift to any of our athletic programs, please go to: www.foundation.unh.edu/make-gift-1
PHILOSOPHY & CULTURE
The philosophy and culture of the Athletic Department is embodied in student-athlete development. Excellence in academics and athletics is a portion of that development. It also entails perfecting skills to be successful in the University and state of New Hampshire communities as well as life-long endeavors. To accomplish this goal, the Athletic Department utilizes the expertise and services of many campus departments and organizations, including Health (substance use/abuse, sexually responsible behavior, sport-specific nutrition), Hazing, Diversity & Inclusion (gender, ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation), Career Planning & Preparation, Financial Responsibility, Leadership and Community Service. Student-athlete development includes activities such as: Wildcat Mentors (UNH student-athletes serve as Big Brothers/Sisters with the Newmarket Jr. High School); Read Across America (visit elementary and middle schools to read and facilitate discussion on the importance of education and staying in school); Holiday Food and Toy Drives; Hoops for Hunger; Soles 4 Souls Shoe Collection (over 1,200 pairs shipped to people in the U.S. and abroad); and Alternative Spring Break (travel to New Orleans and West Virginia to assist in community rebuilding). The collective team involvement in service projects and activities, which also included special projects by individual teams beyond the aforementioned list, exceeded 4,500 community service hours in the 2010-11 academic year. The melding of UNH athletics and the Granite State extends beyond community service. The Athletic Department facilities are utilized by more than just the 20 varsity teams it sponsors. The University’s recreation department has access to some of the intercollegiate facilities for intramural sports that are open to all University students, and the UNH faculty/staff also has access for recreational use. In addition, the Athletic Department has a partnership with Northeast Passage in which we provide support regarding admissions, athletic training and conditioning, and academic support. Taylor Chace honed his skills as part of the Northeast Passage program utilizing UNH’s facilities and went on to earn both a bronze (2006) and gold (2010) medal at the Paralympic Winter Games as a member of Team USA. Furthermore, the Seacoast community and entire state of New Hampshire benefit from UNH’s athletic facilities. The Oyster River High School hockey team has called the Whittemore Center home for a number of years and the facility also brings in numerous cheerleading competitions. Cowell Stadium – and the Reggie F. Atkins Track & Field Facility – has been home for the New Hampshire Special Olympics Summer Games and, more recently, local youth and high school football teams have played games at that venue. And at the Field House, Lundholm Gym is a site for NHIAA basketball championships, the Paul Sweet Oval holds several high school indoor track meets annually and Swasey Pool has both youth and high school events. The athletic facilities are also the home of various fundraisers, such as the Relay For Life at the Paul Sweet Oval.
UNH Athletic Department Mission Statement
The mission of the intercollegiate athletics program at UNH is to provide student-athletes a collegiate experience that is enriched by their participation in programs that are competitive at the NCAA Division I level both regionally and nationally. The intercollegiate athletics program also plays an important role by enhancing the quality of life for the University and statewide community by being a source of pride and identification with the University while always maintaining high standards of academic scholarship and integrity. To fulfill its mission, the intercollegiate program must: (1) Provide student-athletes every opportunity to meet academic and athletic demands with the goal of graduating every student-athlete; (2) Provide resources necessary to field competitive teams with league affiliations, and to gain regional and national recognition; (3) Provide equitable opportunities for all intercollegiate athletics by the active recruitment of minority athletes, and provide equitable opportunities for all women student-athletes commensurate with that of their male counterparts; (4) Provide excellent facilities for all athletes to train, practice and play; (5) Conduct all operations within state and federal law, University policies, rules of the NCAA and athletics conferences in which the University competes.