ORONO, Maine – The University of Maine Sports Hall of Fame has announced its class of 2026, featuring six individuals who span more than a century of Black Bear history and one legendary team.
 
Youth is served by women's basketball's Blanca Millan, honored in her first year of eligibility, while the historical figure is cross country legend Frank Preti, who performed more than a century ago.
 
Performing in the spotlight, on the 1998-99 men's national champion hockey team, was Cory Larose, while Amanda (Mandy) Cronin was simultaneously making saves on the new women's ice hockey team.
 
Performer and director, or athlete and coach, were distance runner Patrick O'Malley and diving coach Rich Miller. Completing the class, to be inducted on Friday, October 16 in a banquet at Jeff's Catering in Brewer, is the 1976 baseball team that won two College World Series game in Omaha.

The 2026 UMaine Hall of Fame class was selected by the UMaine Sports Hall of Fame committee and approved by Director of Athletics Jude Killy. The induction dinner and ceremony will be held on Friday, Oct. 16 at Jeff's Catering in Brewer, Maine.
 
Millan '21 was the first player in America East women's basketball history to be named twice as both the league's player and defensive player of the year. That's for starters. She was named the NCAA international player of the year by World Exposure Report and was a finalist for the 2021 Becky Hammon mid-major player of the year award.  Plus, she was a first-team All-America East selection three times. Statistically, she finished the 2020-21 season ranked 15^th in the nation in both scoring (21.4 points per game) and steals (2.90) and earned her third-straight selection to the America East all-defensive team. She ranks seventh on Maine's all-time scoring list with 1,974 career points and helped guide Maine to America East conference titles and NCAA tournament appearances in both 2018 and 2019.
 
Preti '17, as in class of 1917, was also an inductee as a member of the 1915 cross country team, a team honored primarily on the swift strides of Preti, who finished second in the IC4A meet in New York, which Maine won.  This was in pre-NCAA days and considered the national championship. In 1913, Preti was first in the state meet and third in New England, and in 1914 he was first in New England in cross country and crowned the state two-mile champion, showing promise of what was to come in 1915. In 1916, Preti placed third in New England cross country and 11th at the IC4A meet.
 
Larose '00 was a member of the 1998-99 national champion ice hockey team that was inducted into the UMaine Sports Hall of Fame in 2024 and now he joins teammate Steve Kariya as an individual hall of fame honoree. He followed up the national championship the following season as captain, first team All-Hockey East, Hockey East all-tournament team and second team All-American. He led the Black Bears in assists (36) and points (51) in 1999-00.  For his career, he is third in assists (119) and, with 61 goals in 146 games, he is eighth on Maine's all-time list in points (180). He later played professionally for eight seasons in the American Hockey League and played seven games with the New York Rangers.
 
Cronin '02 joined Maine's women's hockey team in its second season (1998-99). She set a school goaltending record by making 66 saves in one game, a record which stood until 2013. Cronin shares the school record of nine shutouts and ranks fourth among Maine goaltenders in career games (66) and career saves (1,751). She served as team captain during her junior and senior seasons. Post-UMaine, she played five years in the National Women's Hockey League and then five years in the Canadian Women's Hockey League, winning the Clarkson Cup in 2007 and '08 with the Brampton Thunder. Cronin was one of the co-founders of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. After five seasons with Brampton, she left to sign with the newly formed Boston Blades, the first American CWHL team. She worked with USA Hockey as a goalie coach and evaluator at national camps and represented USA Hockey at the IIHF Performance and Development Camp in Finland. Cronin went on to serve as general manager for the Buffalo Beauts and the Toronto Six.
 
O'Malley '90 has made it a given that he'll always put his best foot forward, winning three letters each in cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field, and serving three years as cross country captain and as a senior for both the indoor and outdoor seasons. In 1989, O'Malley turned in the America East's all-time best mark in the 10,000 meter at 30:42.21 to earn America East all-conference honors. His record time would stand until 2008. He recorded the school's all-time second fastest 10,000 meters and all-time third fastest 5,000 meters. On the cross country circuit, O'Malley earned league all-conference honors in 1988 and was named Maine College Runner of the Year by New England Runner Magazine. He was a multi-time IC4A qualifier, a multi-time All-New England Track, All-New England Cross Country, All-North Atlantic Conference Tack, and All-North Atlantic Conference Cross Country honoree and was named the M Club Student-Athlete of the Year. After graduating, he worked 10 years at Nike before serving four years as the Director of Product / Director of Running at Reebok. Following his time at Reebok, O'Malley moved on to Saucony where he advanced up the ranks from Director of Product, to VP of Product, SVP of Global Product, and eventually President of Saucony. Under his professional direction, his shoe products received numerous accolades of national praise including 'Editor's Choice', 'Best Buy', and 'Best Debut' by Runner's World Magazine.

Miller coached 16 New England intercollegiate diving champions (12 men and four women) and nine NCAA national qualifiers and participants (four men and five women) during his 13 years (1972-'85) with the UMaine program. Leading men included Roy Warren, a member of the UMaine Sports Hall of Fame, and Keven Martin, an Eastern Seaboard intercollegiate champion. On the women's side, he coached three NCAA All-Americans and three AIAW national qualifiers and participants. In 1985, five of his divers (the most for any school) qualified for the NCAA Division II nationals in the 1- and 3-meter.  Every female diver Miller coached at Maine scored at the New Englands.
 
The 1976 Baseball team was the second UMaine team to reach the College World Series, finishing with a 29-9 record after winning two games in Omaha, 9-8 over Auburn and 6-3 over Washington State. During the run, the Black Bears pieced together a pair of 10-game win streaks. Led on the diamond by UMaine Sports Hall of Famers Ed Flaherty, Jack Leggett, Bert Roberge, who pitched six seasons in the major leagues, and shortstop Russ Quetti, who was named to the College World Series all-tournament team, it was the first of six teams that coach John Winkin led to Omaha. The 1976 Black Bears captured the ECAC championship, with wins over UConn and UMass, before sweeping their way through the NCAA Northeast Regional, with wins over Penn State, Temple, and Seton Hall, to earn their spot in the College World Series. Tony DiBiase (.339), John Dumont (.311), and Leggett (.307) led the way at the plate while Roberge finished the year 9-2 with a 2.06 earned run average and 60 strikeouts to pace Maine on the mound. Steve Conley (7-2) and Barry Lacasse (7-1) bolstered the Black Bears' pitching staff.
 
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