Western New England Announces 2019-20 Athletic Department Award Winners
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (July 8, 2020) – The Western New England University athletic department announced its annual student-athlete award winners on Wednesday afternoon. These awards will be presented to the student-athletes at an awards ceremony to be determined at a later time.
Junior Nick Arborio (Berlin, Conn.) of the wrestling team was named the Coca-Cola Male Athlete of the Year, and women's basketball senior Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) earned Coca-Cola Female Athlete of the Year honors. Seniors Liam McDonnell (Methuen, Mass.) of the football team and Morgan Schrader (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) of the women's tennis team received Male and Female Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year recognition, respectively.
Western New England's annual department awards are selected by all members of the athletic administration, coaches, and full-time staff. Established in 2011, the Coca-Cola Athlete of the Year awards recognize the top male and female student-athlete performers of the year. The Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards, which were first given out in 2003, recognize senior student-athletes for their excellence in the classroom and on the field.
Arborio had an historic campaign for the Golden Bears. The Berlin, Conn. native compiled a 21-0 record at 125lbs, on his way to earning 1st Team All American honors. Arborio also collected 1st Team All-Northeast Region and 1st Team All-Conference Honors. Arborio became only the second member in program history, and first since the 2013 season, to win the Northeast Regional Championship, with a win over the #1 ranked wrestler at 125lbs in the NCAA.
Farrell was a top performer for a Western New England squad that captured the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) regular season championship and advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament for the second straight season, in which they earned the opportunity to serve as the host for their sectional. Farrell earned 1st team All-CCC and New England Women's Basketball Association (NEWBA) All-Region Second team honors after leading the Golden Bears in scoring (13.7 ppg), assists per game (3.5), 3pt % (35.5), and minutes played (925). Farrell scored in double figures in 22 games this season, and reached the 1,000 point milestone on February 11 in a 75-64 win over Nichols.
Schrader, a two-year captain, wrapped up her collegiate career by earning All-CCC first team and CCC Co-Senior Scholar-Athlete honors. Off the court, Schrader graduated with a 3.965 grade point average as a mechanical engineering major with a concentration in mechatronics. She was inducted into the Chi Alpha Sigma National College Athlete Honor Society in 2019 and was also a member of the Tau Beta Pi (Engineering) Honor Society and the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society.
McDonnell, a two-year position captain, wrapped up his collegiate career by earning numerous awards. He was named to the All-CCC first team in 2019 after helping the Golden Bears to their fifth straight league title and their third straight CCC Championship. Mc Donnell earned the CCC Hal Chalmers Award for Senior Scholar-Athlete, a member of the 2020 National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society, and named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team. Off the field, McDonnell graduated with a 3.7 grade point average as a biomedical engineering major and is a member of the Chi Alpha Sigma National Honor Society.
