University of New Hampshire Athletics
6/10/2021 1:11:00 PM | General, Men's Track & Field, Women's Cross Country, Women's Track & Field, Men's Cross Country
BOSTON – Meg Champagne (Plattsburgh, N.Y.) and James Wilkes (Concord, N.H.) of the University of New Hampshire have been named nominees for the 2020-21 America East Woman of the Year and 2020-21 America East Man of the Year, respectively. The announcement was made Thursday by the conference.
This award recognizes the conference's male and female student-athlete who has best distinguished himself and herself throughout their collegiate career in the areas of academic achievement, athletic excellence, service and leadership.
Champagne and Wilkes, both of whom competed on the UNH cross country and both track & field teams, were named recipients of the Jim Urquhart Student-Athlete of the Year Award at the UNH athletic department's Senior Showcase in May.
In five years at New Hampshire, Champagne epitomized what it means to be a high-level student-athlete by excelling both in the classroom and in competition. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in English, Text, Business Writing and Digital Studies in May 2020 as a Dean's List student with a 3.68 GPA. In 2020-21, she has pursued a master's in business administration with a 3.70 GPA. She made the America East Commissioner's Honor Roll every semester of competition and is a two-time member of the National College Athlete Honor Society, Chi Alpha Sigma.
Champagne was equally hardworking, committed and successful competing for the cross country and both indoor and outdoor track teams. She not only followed in the tradition of championship distance runners at UNH, she achieved her own championship legacy. As a three-season athlete, Champagne is one of the few runners who thrived in all three disciplines, and she scored points every America East meet at which she competed.
In cross country, Champagne was a four-time America East All-Conference Team performer with a top finish of fifth place in 2019. She led the Wildcats to three conference championships and three New England titles – all in 2016, 2017 and 2019. She finished in the Top 10, highlighted by third place in '19, at all four New England races.
Champagne was a 3,000-meter America East champion in the indoor 2020 season and went on to win the 5,000m at the ECAC indoor championship. She also holds two New England titles: the 5,000m at the 2017 outdoor championship and the 10,000m in her final race as a Wildcat this past May. Champagne's winning and personal-best time of 36 minutes, 20.94 seconds was 40.85 seconds faster than her previous best recorded earlier in the 2021 season at the America East Championships.
As one of the team captains in this year of COVID-19, Champagne was instrumental in team communications and motivation.
Champagne is also an individual who cares about the world around her. In summer 2020, she participated in fund raising for the Black Lives Matter movement by setting up her own go fund me page.
Wilkes exemplified the student-athlete that Jim Urquhart embraced. He earned six America East All-Conference Team accolades in his four years as a UNH Wildcat, and was named to both the America East Commissioners Honor Roll and Academic Honor Roll multiple times while compiling a 3.44 GPA in pursuit of a chemistry degree.
At the 2021 America East Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Wilkes ran the fastest time in the 1,500m preliminaries to advance to the finals, where he placed third with a personal best time of 3 minutes, 50.63 seconds. He also ran a leg in UNH's second-place 4x800m relay team.
Wilkes excelled in the 800m during the 2021 outdoor season; he competed in that event at all three home invitationals and won all three races with a (then) personal-best 1:50.19 in his last home meet at Reggie Atkins Track & Field Facility.
At the ECAC Championships, he ran a sub-1:50 of 1:49.63 in the 800m to place fourth and qualify for the NCAA Preliminary Round at the University of North Florida. Wilkes was seeded 46th of 48 runners at the preliminaries and placed 41st – seventh in his heat – with a time of 1:52.21.
At the 2021 America East Cross Country Championships this past March, Wilkes was the top Wildcat with his all-conference effort of 13th place.
To be nominated for Man/Woman of the Year, student-athletes must have completed intercollegiate eligibility in their primary sport by the end of the 2021 spring season or received an undergraduate degree prior to the conclusion of the summer 2021 term and have a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.50 (4.00 scale).
The nominees will be narrowed down to three finalists per gender, who will be announced June 16. The 2020-21 America East Man and Woman of the Year award recipients will be announced June 22.
America East began honoring a Woman of the Year in 2006 and introduced the Man of the Year in 2015. UNH's Laura Rose Donegan (cross country/track & field) was voted 2017 Woman of the Year.
This award recognizes the conference's male and female student-athlete who has best distinguished himself and herself throughout their collegiate career in the areas of academic achievement, athletic excellence, service and leadership.
Champagne and Wilkes, both of whom competed on the UNH cross country and both track & field teams, were named recipients of the Jim Urquhart Student-Athlete of the Year Award at the UNH athletic department's Senior Showcase in May.
In five years at New Hampshire, Champagne epitomized what it means to be a high-level student-athlete by excelling both in the classroom and in competition. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in English, Text, Business Writing and Digital Studies in May 2020 as a Dean's List student with a 3.68 GPA. In 2020-21, she has pursued a master's in business administration with a 3.70 GPA. She made the America East Commissioner's Honor Roll every semester of competition and is a two-time member of the National College Athlete Honor Society, Chi Alpha Sigma.
Champagne was equally hardworking, committed and successful competing for the cross country and both indoor and outdoor track teams. She not only followed in the tradition of championship distance runners at UNH, she achieved her own championship legacy. As a three-season athlete, Champagne is one of the few runners who thrived in all three disciplines, and she scored points every America East meet at which she competed.
In cross country, Champagne was a four-time America East All-Conference Team performer with a top finish of fifth place in 2019. She led the Wildcats to three conference championships and three New England titles – all in 2016, 2017 and 2019. She finished in the Top 10, highlighted by third place in '19, at all four New England races.
Champagne was a 3,000-meter America East champion in the indoor 2020 season and went on to win the 5,000m at the ECAC indoor championship. She also holds two New England titles: the 5,000m at the 2017 outdoor championship and the 10,000m in her final race as a Wildcat this past May. Champagne's winning and personal-best time of 36 minutes, 20.94 seconds was 40.85 seconds faster than her previous best recorded earlier in the 2021 season at the America East Championships.
As one of the team captains in this year of COVID-19, Champagne was instrumental in team communications and motivation.
Champagne is also an individual who cares about the world around her. In summer 2020, she participated in fund raising for the Black Lives Matter movement by setting up her own go fund me page.
Wilkes exemplified the student-athlete that Jim Urquhart embraced. He earned six America East All-Conference Team accolades in his four years as a UNH Wildcat, and was named to both the America East Commissioners Honor Roll and Academic Honor Roll multiple times while compiling a 3.44 GPA in pursuit of a chemistry degree.
At the 2021 America East Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Wilkes ran the fastest time in the 1,500m preliminaries to advance to the finals, where he placed third with a personal best time of 3 minutes, 50.63 seconds. He also ran a leg in UNH's second-place 4x800m relay team.
Wilkes excelled in the 800m during the 2021 outdoor season; he competed in that event at all three home invitationals and won all three races with a (then) personal-best 1:50.19 in his last home meet at Reggie Atkins Track & Field Facility.
At the ECAC Championships, he ran a sub-1:50 of 1:49.63 in the 800m to place fourth and qualify for the NCAA Preliminary Round at the University of North Florida. Wilkes was seeded 46th of 48 runners at the preliminaries and placed 41st – seventh in his heat – with a time of 1:52.21.
At the 2021 America East Cross Country Championships this past March, Wilkes was the top Wildcat with his all-conference effort of 13th place.
To be nominated for Man/Woman of the Year, student-athletes must have completed intercollegiate eligibility in their primary sport by the end of the 2021 spring season or received an undergraduate degree prior to the conclusion of the summer 2021 term and have a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.50 (4.00 scale).
The nominees will be narrowed down to three finalists per gender, who will be announced June 16. The 2020-21 America East Man and Woman of the Year award recipients will be announced June 22.
America East began honoring a Woman of the Year in 2006 and introduced the Man of the Year in 2015. UNH's Laura Rose Donegan (cross country/track & field) was voted 2017 Woman of the Year.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Women's Track & Field
Distance
/ Men's Cross CountrySunday, October 25
Sunday, October 25
Saturday, October 24
Saturday, October 24