University of Massachusets Athletics
Massachusetts Athletics Announces Hall Of Fame Class Of 2023
June 12, 2023 | Baseball, General, Men's Swimming & Diving, Softball, Women's Soccer, Women's Swimming & Diving
The UMass Athletics George "Trigger" Burke Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on Friday, September 29
AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts Athletics has announced the George "Trigger" Burke Hall of Fame Class of 2023, including Muchie Dagliere (Baseball 1995-1998), Mandy Hixon (Diving Coach 2002-2017 & 2019), Rebecca Myers (Women's Soccer 1993-1996) and Sara Plourde (Softball 2009-12).
During the enshrinement ceremony, Massachusetts Athletics will also bestow three special recognition awards: the Martin Jacobson '68 Distinguished Alumni Award, the John Francis Kennedy '76G Maroon Leadership Award and the Elaine Sortino Alumna Award for Achievement. UMass alums Jim & Ellen Hunt (both class of '77) will receive the 2023 Jacobson Award, Susan Pearson will receive the Kennedy Award and Gloria Nevarez '93 will receive the Elaine Sortino Award.
The UMass Athletics George "Trigger" Burke Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on Friday, September 29 at 6 p.m. at the Campus Center Auditorium. Please register online at www.umassalumni.com/hof2023. Questions regarding the event can be addressed to Director of Special Events & Constituent Relations Jason Germain at jag@umass.edu.
Muchie Dagliere • Baseball • Second Base • 1995-98
One of the most decorated baseball players in program history, Muchie Dagliere guided the Minutemen to four A-10 Division Championships and two A-10 Tournament Championships.
A four-year starting second baseman, Dagliere is the only player in program history to earn three All-America honors. He also holds program records for longest hitting streak (31 games), hits (257), RBI (176), runs (184) and batting average (.381).
As a freshman in 1995 he batted .343 while totaling 62 hits and eight home runs to go along with 50 runs. Then as a sophomore in 1996 he had a .415 batting average, 81 hits, 60 runs, 53 RBI and 13 doubles. The 81 hits set the UMass record for hits in a season en route to earning First-Team All-Atlantic 10 honors, First-Team All-New England honors and Second-Team All-Northeast Region honors. As a junior in 1997 he posted a .318 batting average, 47 hits, 36 runs and 36 RBIs and was a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selection and a Third Team NCBWA All-America honoree.
Then as a senior in 1998, he posted the seventh-best batting average in the country at .444, added 67 hits, scored 39 runs and totaled 49 RBI. He closed out his career by being a First Team Atlantic-10 and All-New England selection and earned First-Team All-Northeast Region honors. He also was a Third-Team ABCA All-American honoree and a Second-Team NCBWA All-American. The .444 batting average remains the top single-season mark in program history.
Mandy Hixon• Diving • Coach • 2002-17 & 2019
Mandy Hixon transformed Massachusetts diving during her 17-year career leading the program. She was named Atlantic 10 Diving Coach of the Year a combined 18 times including 2008-11 and 2014-16 on the men's side and 2006, 2008-15, 2017 and 2020 for the women.
Hixon coached 11 UMass women's divers to Atlantic 10 Most Outstanding Diver honors while guiding the men's divers to six Most Outstanding awards at the league's annual championship meets.
In 2009, she helped Jason Cook become the first diver in UMass history to qualify for the NCAA meet. Then in 2013 and 2014 Michaela Butler became a three-time All-American at the NCAA Championships meet as she finished fourth on the one-meter board in 2013 and in 2014 she took fifth on both the one-meter and three-meter.
Prior to Massachusetts, Hixon coached at Amherst and Williams. As a diver at Ohio State, Hixon was an All-American selection, a two-time Carrie Irish Finneran Award Recipient (school's MVP) and a four-year scholar athlete. She was a member of the United States International diving team between 1980-1984 and placed sixth at the 1984 Olympic Diving Trials.
Rebecca Myers • Women's Soccer • Midfield • 1993-96
Rebecca Myers helped guide Massachusetts to a NCAA Final Four appearance (1993), three NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearances (1994-96) and three conference championships (1993-95) during her time leading the Minutewomen midfield.
A four-year letterwinner, Myers ranks third in the UMass record books for career points (101), second in career goals (38) and sixth in career assists (25). She also ranks tied for fourth all-time with 12 game-winning goals.
Myers was a three time All-American, four-time All-Region honoree, was named to the 1993 NCAA All-Tournament Team and earned A-10 Tournament MVP honors in 1994. A three-time All-New England selection, Myers earned Conference Rookie of the Year honors and was a four-time First Team All-Conference selection.
After UMass, she played semiprofessional for the Chicago Cobras and won a National Championship in 2001. She later served as an assistant coach at UMass from 2001-2004 and earned a master's degree in educational administration.
Sara Plourde • Softball • Pitcher • 2009-12
A dominant pitcher for the Minutewomen, Sara Plourde led Massachusetts to three NCAA Regional appearances and three Atlantic 10 Championships in her career while compiling a 109-35 career record in the circle with a 1.47 ERA in 965.2 innings pitched.
Plourde was a two-time NFCA All-American (2010, 2011) and two-time Easton All-American (2011, 2012) while also being a three-time NFCA All-Region selection. A three-time Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year, she was also the 2012 A-10 Player of the Year and totaled three All-Conference honors.
Plourde threw 16 solo no-hitters and a pair of perfect games and holds UMass strikeout record with 1,662. She ranks second all-time in career wins (109), holds the top UMass mark in strikeouts per seven innings (12.05) and is the single-season record holder for wins with 40 in 2010. She also boasts the top three single-season strikeout marks at UMass, including the record with 556 in the 2010 season.
Plourde's 12.05 strikeouts per seven innings for her career ranks third among NCAA career leaders, while her 1,662 strikeouts rank eighth. She went on to play for the Canadian National Team from 2013-19.
MARTIN JACOBSON '68,19H DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENT:
Jim & Ellen Hunt (both Class of '77)
The Jacobson Award is presented annually to an alumni/ae who has made truly exceptional contributions of leadership and service to the athletic department and has demonstrated an appreciation for and worked to enhance UMass' rich athletic heritage as an important component of the undergraduate educational experience.
In February, Jim & Ellen Hunt announced a $2 million dollar lead gift for the renovation project of Curry Hicks Cage. The $8 million dollar project will create an indoor performance center for both the men's and women's cross country and track & field teams and will be named in honor of the Hunt's.
"The former Cage has tremendous memories for me, and I remember congregating with teammates before and after practice in the ancient locker room and around the facility," Jim recalled when the department announced the leadership gift. "It was a historic time for cross country and track and field, as I had the honor of competing with six different All-Americans at UMass. This gift will hopefully have a tremendous influence on the experiences and lives of future student-athletes."
"Jim and Ellen have invested in UMass every year since graduation and over time have increased their level of involvement and financial commitment to the University," Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford said. "In addition, they have served on a number of leadership boards and committees in support of the flagship campus. Their passion for UMass Athletics, in particular, has been remarkable, especially the goals they have to positively influence the lives of our current and future student-athletes. By every measure, they have worked to enhance our rich athletic heritage as an important component of the undergraduate experience."
JOHN FRANCIS KENNEDY '76G MAROON LEADERSHIP AWARD:
Susan Pearson
The Kennedy Award is presented annually to a non-alumnus who has made significant and lasting contributions of service and loyalty to promote and generate competitive excellence and student-athlete impact within the athletic department.
Susan Pearson came to work at UMass immediately after graduating from Smith College in 1972. She has served the University in a variety of roles, including Associate Provost and Associate Chancellor, working mostly in the areas of academic personnel and collective bargaining. She has served as President of the Academy for Academic Personnel Administration and on the Advisory Board of the National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions, and has made presentations nationally on a broad range of topics, including post-tenure review, work-life balance, faculty workload, academic leadership in a unionized environment, collaborative approaches to collective bargaining, conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment, revenue enhancement strategies, and unionization of graduate student employees, post-docs, and undergraduate student workers.
Pearson has also been involved in UMass Athletics in a variety of roles during the past 50 years, during which she says she was particularly grateful for feeling welcomed into the Athletics Department family and for having the opportunity to contribute to the development of the program. Her involvement with the department included a year as Interim Deputy Athletics Director, which she describes as one of the most enjoyable experiences of her career.
"Sue Pearson has quietly helped advance Massachusetts Athletics in a number of ways over the last 50 years," said Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "She has always been a steadfast supporter of the department's mission, a thoughtful advisor to many athletics administrators and coaches and an informal liaison linking the department and campus community through her tremendous insights and passionate advocacy. While her work was done mostly behind the scenes, our department has benefitted immensely from its association with Susan Pearson."
ELAINE SORTINO ALUMNA AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT:
Gloria Nevarez '93
The Elaine Sortino Award is presented annually to a UMass alumna who in their life after UMass has made significant contributions of leadership and has achieved excellence in their respective fields. The award is named for the University's legendary softball coach Elaine Sortino, who led the Minutewomen to 23 Atlantic 10 titles, 21 NCAA Tournament appearances, and three trips to the Women's College World Series over 34 years.
Over the past 25 years, Gloria Nevarez has had a dedicated career in college athletics starting with her first job as the first full-time Director of Compliance in school history at San Jose State University. From there, Nevarez worked at the University of California, Berkeley joining their athletic program staff as the Assistant Athletics Director of Compliance and Legal Affairs, while also serving as the interim Senior Woman Administrator. Following that, Nevarez began a term as the Associate Commissioner and Senior Woman Administrator for the West Coast Conference for the next five years.
In August 2007, Nevarez was named Senior Associate Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator at the University of Oklahoma. In March 2010, Nevarez was named Senior Associate Commissioner and Senior Woman Administrator of the Pac-10 Conference, known since 2011 as the Pac-12 Conference. In April 2018, Gloria Nevarez was selected to serve as the fourth full-time Commissioner in the 66-year history of the West Coast Conference. Nevarez is one of nine female conference commissioners currently serving in Division I Athletics and is the first Latin American to ascend to the commissioner's chair in Division I.
Most recently in November 2022, the Mountain West Conference Board of Directors selected Nevarez as their new commissioner; she officially assumed her duties on January 1, 2023. Nevarez attended the University of Massachusetts, where she was a scholarship student-athlete in basketball and graduated (cum laude) with a B.S. in Sports Management.
"Gloria Nevarez is a highly respected leader in college athletics who has separated herself as one of the most influential administrators in NCAA Division I athletics over the last 10 years," added Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "Her talents, first as a highly regarded campus athletics administrator, and then in various leadership roles at three Division I conferences, have allowed her to achieve excellence in our field. Gloria's ascension in college athletics is a particular point of pride for our athletics department and the Mark H. McCormack Department of Sport Management in the Isenberg School of Management."
During the enshrinement ceremony, Massachusetts Athletics will also bestow three special recognition awards: the Martin Jacobson '68 Distinguished Alumni Award, the John Francis Kennedy '76G Maroon Leadership Award and the Elaine Sortino Alumna Award for Achievement. UMass alums Jim & Ellen Hunt (both class of '77) will receive the 2023 Jacobson Award, Susan Pearson will receive the Kennedy Award and Gloria Nevarez '93 will receive the Elaine Sortino Award.
The UMass Athletics George "Trigger" Burke Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on Friday, September 29 at 6 p.m. at the Campus Center Auditorium. Please register online at www.umassalumni.com/hof2023. Questions regarding the event can be addressed to Director of Special Events & Constituent Relations Jason Germain at jag@umass.edu.
Muchie Dagliere • Baseball • Second Base • 1995-98
One of the most decorated baseball players in program history, Muchie Dagliere guided the Minutemen to four A-10 Division Championships and two A-10 Tournament Championships.
A four-year starting second baseman, Dagliere is the only player in program history to earn three All-America honors. He also holds program records for longest hitting streak (31 games), hits (257), RBI (176), runs (184) and batting average (.381).
As a freshman in 1995 he batted .343 while totaling 62 hits and eight home runs to go along with 50 runs. Then as a sophomore in 1996 he had a .415 batting average, 81 hits, 60 runs, 53 RBI and 13 doubles. The 81 hits set the UMass record for hits in a season en route to earning First-Team All-Atlantic 10 honors, First-Team All-New England honors and Second-Team All-Northeast Region honors. As a junior in 1997 he posted a .318 batting average, 47 hits, 36 runs and 36 RBIs and was a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selection and a Third Team NCBWA All-America honoree.
Then as a senior in 1998, he posted the seventh-best batting average in the country at .444, added 67 hits, scored 39 runs and totaled 49 RBI. He closed out his career by being a First Team Atlantic-10 and All-New England selection and earned First-Team All-Northeast Region honors. He also was a Third-Team ABCA All-American honoree and a Second-Team NCBWA All-American. The .444 batting average remains the top single-season mark in program history.
Mandy Hixon• Diving • Coach • 2002-17 & 2019
Mandy Hixon transformed Massachusetts diving during her 17-year career leading the program. She was named Atlantic 10 Diving Coach of the Year a combined 18 times including 2008-11 and 2014-16 on the men's side and 2006, 2008-15, 2017 and 2020 for the women.
Hixon coached 11 UMass women's divers to Atlantic 10 Most Outstanding Diver honors while guiding the men's divers to six Most Outstanding awards at the league's annual championship meets.
In 2009, she helped Jason Cook become the first diver in UMass history to qualify for the NCAA meet. Then in 2013 and 2014 Michaela Butler became a three-time All-American at the NCAA Championships meet as she finished fourth on the one-meter board in 2013 and in 2014 she took fifth on both the one-meter and three-meter.
Prior to Massachusetts, Hixon coached at Amherst and Williams. As a diver at Ohio State, Hixon was an All-American selection, a two-time Carrie Irish Finneran Award Recipient (school's MVP) and a four-year scholar athlete. She was a member of the United States International diving team between 1980-1984 and placed sixth at the 1984 Olympic Diving Trials.
Rebecca Myers • Women's Soccer • Midfield • 1993-96
Rebecca Myers helped guide Massachusetts to a NCAA Final Four appearance (1993), three NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearances (1994-96) and three conference championships (1993-95) during her time leading the Minutewomen midfield.
A four-year letterwinner, Myers ranks third in the UMass record books for career points (101), second in career goals (38) and sixth in career assists (25). She also ranks tied for fourth all-time with 12 game-winning goals.
Myers was a three time All-American, four-time All-Region honoree, was named to the 1993 NCAA All-Tournament Team and earned A-10 Tournament MVP honors in 1994. A three-time All-New England selection, Myers earned Conference Rookie of the Year honors and was a four-time First Team All-Conference selection.
After UMass, she played semiprofessional for the Chicago Cobras and won a National Championship in 2001. She later served as an assistant coach at UMass from 2001-2004 and earned a master's degree in educational administration.
Sara Plourde • Softball • Pitcher • 2009-12
A dominant pitcher for the Minutewomen, Sara Plourde led Massachusetts to three NCAA Regional appearances and three Atlantic 10 Championships in her career while compiling a 109-35 career record in the circle with a 1.47 ERA in 965.2 innings pitched.
Plourde was a two-time NFCA All-American (2010, 2011) and two-time Easton All-American (2011, 2012) while also being a three-time NFCA All-Region selection. A three-time Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year, she was also the 2012 A-10 Player of the Year and totaled three All-Conference honors.
Plourde threw 16 solo no-hitters and a pair of perfect games and holds UMass strikeout record with 1,662. She ranks second all-time in career wins (109), holds the top UMass mark in strikeouts per seven innings (12.05) and is the single-season record holder for wins with 40 in 2010. She also boasts the top three single-season strikeout marks at UMass, including the record with 556 in the 2010 season.
Plourde's 12.05 strikeouts per seven innings for her career ranks third among NCAA career leaders, while her 1,662 strikeouts rank eighth. She went on to play for the Canadian National Team from 2013-19.
MARTIN JACOBSON '68,19H DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENT:
Jim & Ellen Hunt (both Class of '77)
The Jacobson Award is presented annually to an alumni/ae who has made truly exceptional contributions of leadership and service to the athletic department and has demonstrated an appreciation for and worked to enhance UMass' rich athletic heritage as an important component of the undergraduate educational experience.
In February, Jim & Ellen Hunt announced a $2 million dollar lead gift for the renovation project of Curry Hicks Cage. The $8 million dollar project will create an indoor performance center for both the men's and women's cross country and track & field teams and will be named in honor of the Hunt's.
"The former Cage has tremendous memories for me, and I remember congregating with teammates before and after practice in the ancient locker room and around the facility," Jim recalled when the department announced the leadership gift. "It was a historic time for cross country and track and field, as I had the honor of competing with six different All-Americans at UMass. This gift will hopefully have a tremendous influence on the experiences and lives of future student-athletes."
"Jim and Ellen have invested in UMass every year since graduation and over time have increased their level of involvement and financial commitment to the University," Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford said. "In addition, they have served on a number of leadership boards and committees in support of the flagship campus. Their passion for UMass Athletics, in particular, has been remarkable, especially the goals they have to positively influence the lives of our current and future student-athletes. By every measure, they have worked to enhance our rich athletic heritage as an important component of the undergraduate experience."
JOHN FRANCIS KENNEDY '76G MAROON LEADERSHIP AWARD:
Susan Pearson
The Kennedy Award is presented annually to a non-alumnus who has made significant and lasting contributions of service and loyalty to promote and generate competitive excellence and student-athlete impact within the athletic department.
Susan Pearson came to work at UMass immediately after graduating from Smith College in 1972. She has served the University in a variety of roles, including Associate Provost and Associate Chancellor, working mostly in the areas of academic personnel and collective bargaining. She has served as President of the Academy for Academic Personnel Administration and on the Advisory Board of the National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions, and has made presentations nationally on a broad range of topics, including post-tenure review, work-life balance, faculty workload, academic leadership in a unionized environment, collaborative approaches to collective bargaining, conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment, revenue enhancement strategies, and unionization of graduate student employees, post-docs, and undergraduate student workers.
Pearson has also been involved in UMass Athletics in a variety of roles during the past 50 years, during which she says she was particularly grateful for feeling welcomed into the Athletics Department family and for having the opportunity to contribute to the development of the program. Her involvement with the department included a year as Interim Deputy Athletics Director, which she describes as one of the most enjoyable experiences of her career.
"Sue Pearson has quietly helped advance Massachusetts Athletics in a number of ways over the last 50 years," said Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "She has always been a steadfast supporter of the department's mission, a thoughtful advisor to many athletics administrators and coaches and an informal liaison linking the department and campus community through her tremendous insights and passionate advocacy. While her work was done mostly behind the scenes, our department has benefitted immensely from its association with Susan Pearson."
ELAINE SORTINO ALUMNA AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT:
Gloria Nevarez '93
The Elaine Sortino Award is presented annually to a UMass alumna who in their life after UMass has made significant contributions of leadership and has achieved excellence in their respective fields. The award is named for the University's legendary softball coach Elaine Sortino, who led the Minutewomen to 23 Atlantic 10 titles, 21 NCAA Tournament appearances, and three trips to the Women's College World Series over 34 years.
Over the past 25 years, Gloria Nevarez has had a dedicated career in college athletics starting with her first job as the first full-time Director of Compliance in school history at San Jose State University. From there, Nevarez worked at the University of California, Berkeley joining their athletic program staff as the Assistant Athletics Director of Compliance and Legal Affairs, while also serving as the interim Senior Woman Administrator. Following that, Nevarez began a term as the Associate Commissioner and Senior Woman Administrator for the West Coast Conference for the next five years.
In August 2007, Nevarez was named Senior Associate Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator at the University of Oklahoma. In March 2010, Nevarez was named Senior Associate Commissioner and Senior Woman Administrator of the Pac-10 Conference, known since 2011 as the Pac-12 Conference. In April 2018, Gloria Nevarez was selected to serve as the fourth full-time Commissioner in the 66-year history of the West Coast Conference. Nevarez is one of nine female conference commissioners currently serving in Division I Athletics and is the first Latin American to ascend to the commissioner's chair in Division I.
Most recently in November 2022, the Mountain West Conference Board of Directors selected Nevarez as their new commissioner; she officially assumed her duties on January 1, 2023. Nevarez attended the University of Massachusetts, where she was a scholarship student-athlete in basketball and graduated (cum laude) with a B.S. in Sports Management.
"Gloria Nevarez is a highly respected leader in college athletics who has separated herself as one of the most influential administrators in NCAA Division I athletics over the last 10 years," added Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "Her talents, first as a highly regarded campus athletics administrator, and then in various leadership roles at three Division I conferences, have allowed her to achieve excellence in our field. Gloria's ascension in college athletics is a particular point of pride for our athletics department and the Mark H. McCormack Department of Sport Management in the Isenberg School of Management."
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