Campus Currents

'Cat Tales: How Sweet It Is By Matt DiFilippo '98

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Paul Sweet, left, never missed a practice in 46 years as UNH's track coach, and always wore a coat and tie.

If you don't believe in fate and justice, then the fact that Paul Sweet is 97 years old may come as a surprise to you. Those acquainted with the former UNH track coach know there is something undeniably right about the fact that this revered man who born when William McKinley was president is still around to cheer on his former athletes.

On May 16, a testimonial dinner was given to honor Sweet and promote awareness of the need for funding for an outdoor track on campus and improvements to Cowell Stadium. More than 250 people attended, with almost that many more sending notes and donations.

"He doesn't think he did anything special," current UNH track coach Jim Boulanger '75 says of Sweet, who coached at UNH for 46 years. "Reader's Digest does a feature called 'The Unforgettable Character.' Paul's one of those unforgettable characters. He always did something to make somebody feel good. He always tried to succeed when people said he couldn't."

UNH Scores with Four Coach-of-the-Year Awards

"From spring of '91 to 1994, we just weren't putting it together," Boulanger said. "Some of my alums asked me what happened. It looked like I couldn't recruit."

The picture has brightened enough to the point where Boulanger now says, "I'm not sure we can go any higher."

Like Boulanger, Josh Willman, the men's and women's swimming coach, has won three consecutive coach of the year awards. But Willman has had to endure heartache before finding success this season.

"The women's team has come really close to winning the conference title all three years," he explains. "In 1996, they came in second by five points. The following year , by one-half point. This year one of our main goals was to win the championship, and we won the conference meet by over 200 points."

Newcomer Jill Hirschinger was also named coach of the year after leading the UNH women's volleyball to a 23-10 record in the program's second year. This came on the heels of a 6-26 mark in 1996.

"What made me look really good was the recruits," Hirschinger points out. "I was fortunate enough to have four transfers and three outstanding freshmen. It was almost a brand new team."

Mark Moulton, too, was honored for turning around a team. The first year he coached the women's tennis team, it moved from fifth to second place. Last year, the team placed third. Moulton shares the credit: "It's not just the coach (who wins), it's the players and the whole support staff."

Next year, with many players returning and a new national-level recruit arriving from Canada, the team will shoot for second place. While Boston University, with a full-scholarship tennis team, might as well be in a league of its own, "the rest of us are about the same level," he notes. "We hope to place at least third."

Sandy Vander-Heyden Bridgeman '87 was nominated for America East women's lacrosse coach of the year, but insists, "I think I'm the same old coach that I was." That's a coach who still gets the urge to play.

"I'm always trying to challenge (my players)," Bridgeman remarks. "Like, if I can score on the goalkeeper they have to do a certain thing. I'm still kind of a has-been. I guess they think I should hang up my stick and cleats."