Farrell named VARA Collegiate Skier of the Year

Brad Farrell in the 2014 Middlebury Carnival GS. Dustin Satloff/EISA

COLCHESTER, Vt. – Saint Michael’s College alpine skiing rising junior Brad Farrell continued an honors-filled 2014 by being named the Vermont Alpine Racing Association (VARA) Collegiate Skier of the Year. Farrell became the first Purple Knight recognized since the accolade was established in 2006, as skiers from Middlebury College and the University of Vermont had each won four times. Farrell’s older brother Bobby, a member of the UVM team, was the 2012 winner.

Among VARA’s six annual Merit Awards is Collegiate Skier of the Year, which acknowledges Vermont college skiers in NCAA and United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) programs for their accomplishments at the regional and national levels. Winners are also judged on devotion to the sport, team leadership, camaraderie, sportsmanship and overall character.

During his sophomore campaign, Farrell qualified for the NCAA Championship, where he claimed 19th out of 34 starters during the slalom, matching the second-best showing ever by a Saint Michael’s male skier at a national meet. Farrell was 27th in the NCAA giant slalom. As the only Saint Michael’s skier to qualify for NCAA Championship, he single-handedly lifted the team to a 19th-place showing, tying its best finish at the championship since 1999. Farrell was among the top 20 eight times in 14 events during the winter, placing in the top 10 on three occasions.

Due not only to his athletic success but also his academic credentials, Farrell was among just seven men’s skiers nationally chosen for the Capital One NCAA Division II Academic All-District 1 At-Large team in May. He became the first Alpine skier in his school’s history to earn a College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District honor. Farrell has also qualified for the United States Collegiate Ski Coaches Association (USCSCA) National Collegiate All-Academic Ski Team each of his years at Saint Michael’s.

Farrell and all of the VARA award winners will be recognized on Nov. 8 at the VARA Celebration of Vermont Ski Racing Gala at the Equinox Resort in Manchester, Vt.

Release courtesy of St. Michael’s Athletics