Tunney Murchie made the single largest donation in UB women’s basketball history on Tuesday.
Murchie –– a 1975 graduate of UB and former player and assistant coach for the UB hockey team –– donated $100,000 to help fund the team’s summer tour to Spain. Over the 10-day tour, the team will travel to Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia and compete in three games. UB set a fundraising goal of $150,000 for the trip, so the donation will help defray the majority of the cost.
“I would like to personally thank the Murchie family for their unwavering commitment to UB and this athletic department,” UB Athletic Director Mark Alnutt said in a press release.
Head coach Felisha Legette-Jack also thanked Murchie for his gift and credited Murchie for “bringing notoriety to Western New York” and for putting the Queen City on the map.
“He has given us more than finances, he has given us hope,” Legette-Jack said.
In 2014, Murchie and his family donated $3 million to UB Athletics, which helped fund the Murchie Family Fieldhouse. The Murchie family has a history of making large donations to UB Athletics, including previous gifts that went toward the Edward L Wright Practice Facility in Alumni Arena, the Murchie Family Football Center and the men’s club hockey team.
Murchie is currently the owner and president of Lackawanna Products Corporation in Clarence.
Justin Weiss is the senior sports editor and can be reached at justin.weiss@ubspectrum.com
Justin Weiss is The Spectrum's managing editor. In his free time, he can be found hiking, playing baseball or throwing things at his TV when his sports teams aren't winning. His words have appeared in Elite Sports New York and the Long Island Herald. He can be found on Twitter @Jwmlb1.
Photo: Ryan Hagen | UB Athletics
