The WPI Varsity Athletics Hall of Fame was established in 1983 to honor the best that WPI Varsity Athletics has to offer. It was conceived and founded on the basis that many individuals have bestowed honor and recognition upon both themselves and WPI as a result of their involvement in WPI Varsity athletics. The WPI Varsity Athletics Hall of Fame was created to appropriately recognize those people who have distinguished themselves and WPI.
The WPI Athletic Department, Poly Club, and Hall of Fame Selection Committee are proud to announce its 42nd Class, the Class of 2025. The six newest members were inducted on Friday, September 26, 2025 as part of Homecoming Weekend. They include: pictured below (l-r)
Jeffrey Baker ’11, Veroniki Nikolaki ’16, Liz Pellegrini ’16, Brian Daly '91 (Harrington Award), Gabriela Hoops ’19, Matt Mercer ’94, Nick Triantafell ’86
Photos
JEFFREY BAKER ’11 - Men's Track & Field
- Three-time NCAA Championship participant
- 2008 and 2009 NEWMAC Javelin champion
- Six-time All-NEWMAC honoree, including four in javelin and two in discus
- 2009 Leo S. Jansson Award recipient presented to top sophomore male student-athlete
- Second all-time in javelin record board and top 10 in four other events
- 2010 and 2011 CoSIDA Academic All-America
GABRIELA HOOPS ’19 - Women's Soccer
- 2016 NEWMAC Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore
- Goalkeeper helped WPI to 16-2-3 record with 0.34 GAA as team won first NEWMAC championship
- Pair of postseason shutouts, including clean sheet in program’s only NCAA Tournament match
- Amassed 35 career victories in net with 24 total shutouts in 60 starts
- Totaled 238 saves in her four years in goal with a career GAA of 0.63
- 2017 Patricia Graham recipient as top female sophomore student-athlete
MATT MERCER ’94 - Football
- One of just three players in the over 130 year history of WPI to register 300 or more career tackles
- Linebacker anchored defensive effort during a period the Engineers were 29-9-1
- Member of Crimson and Gray’s last undefeated team in 1990 and only NCAA postseason squad in 1993
- Key cog of ECAC 1991 Bowl Participant and 1992 and 1993 Freedom Football Conference champions
- 125 tackles in 1993 as a senior, including school record of 25 in a single game
- 1993 Freedom Football Conference Defensive MVP and honorable mention All-America
VERONIKI NIKOLAKI ’16 - Women's Swimming & Diving
- Two-time All-America diver, who finished eighth on the 1-meter board at 2016 NCAA Championships
- Four-time NCAA Championship qualifier
- Six-time All-NEWMAC medalist, including conference runner-up in 1-meter in 2015
- Held all four school records at the time of her graduation
- Four-time CSCAA Scholar ALL-America and three-time NEWMAC All-Academic honoree
- A native of Greece, and active member of the Hellenic Student Association while at WPI
LIZ PELLEGRINI ’16 - WPI Women's Track & Field
- First women’s Track and Field All-America with second place showing in 2016 in 400-meter hurdles
- Three-time NCAA participant in seven total events
- School record holder in 400-meter hurdles and three different relay events
- 2016 NEWMAC Track Athlete of the Year; Three-time conference champion
- Named Patricia Graham Award as the University’s top sophomore woman athlete
- CoSIDA Academic All-America honoree and three-time NEWMAC All-Academic team recipient
NICK TRIANTAFELL ’86 - Wrestling
- Ninth member of 1985 and 1986 teams to be inducted into WPI Athletics Hall of Fame
- Broke into the starting lineup as a junior in 1984-85 and went 20-1 in dual meets
- Helped the engineers capture the 1995 New England championship by placing second at 167 pounds
- Dominate senior year in 1985-86, headlined by going 13-0 in dual meets and winning 158 -pound title
- Consecutive NCAA Championship appearances as a junior and senior
- Team captain and Scholar All-America as a senior during 1985-86 campaign
