HADLEY, Mass. – Five student-athletes have been nominated to represent the NESCAC as its Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) Men's Sport Student-Athlete of the Year nominee. A committee of conference administrators will select the NESCAC's representative for the award.
The DIIICA Men's Sport Student-Athlete of the Year Awards honors graduating student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service, and leadership.
Jackson Anderson, Williams Men’s Track & Field
Anderson, an NCAA Champion in the heptathlon and decathlon, earned a degree from Williams in statistics and carried a 3.47 GPA. A four-time Dean’s List student and two-time USTFCCCA All-Academic honoree, Anderson was presented with a Purple Key Award by Williams in 2024.
While at Williams, Anderson served as a Student Advisor on the Committee for Priorities and Resources. The committee of students and faculty members advised the President on various campus matters. Anderson also was an actor in an independent student production, an independent musician, an art model, a teaching assistant in the Statistics Department, and a Williams Outdoor Orientation for Living (WOOLF) staff member and leader. Anderson also worked in the Williams Dining Services Department.
Anderson was named the USTFCCCA Mideast Region Athlete of the Year for both the indoor and outdoor seasons in 2023 and 2024. He also garnered All-America honors five times over his four years and was a six-time all-region performer. Anderson won two NESCAC titles in 2023 and is the conference record holder in the 110-meter Hurdles. He was presented with Williams’ Anthony Plansky Award in 2023.
Joseph Barrett, Colby Men’s Tennis
Barrett carried a 4.13 GPA and graduated with summa cum laude honors in the fields of economics and educational studies. Barrett was awarded the Breckenridge Prize in Economics, given to the senior economics major with the highest GPA. He was also presented with the Charles A. Dana Scholar Award and was a Phi Beta Kappa inductee. Barrett was a two-time Bixler Scholar and earned the Economics Department Prize for Juniors. Barrett was recognized as an Academic All-American in 2024 and was a four-time ITA Academic All-American and three-time NESCAC All-Academic honoree.
An Area Residence Director and Community Advisor in the Campus Life Department, Barrett was awarded the Arthur Galen Eustis, Jr. Prize as a junior while a member of the Hall Staff. Barrett also served as a Research Assistant for the Colby Laboratory for Economic Studies, served as a Teaching Assistant in the Economics Department, was a tutor, and was a student-teacher at Waterville High School.
Barrett was a four-time All-NESCAC player in singles and an All-NESCAC doubles honoree in 2021 the same year he was named the ITA Northeast Region Rookie of the Year. Barrett was an alternate for the 2023 NCAA Division III Singles Championship.
Edward Farrington, Bates Men’s Cross Country and Men’s Track & Field
Farrington earned degrees in environmental studies and history from Bates while carrying a 3.40 GPA. He was a two-time NESCAC All-Academic honoree and garnered All-Academic honors from the USTFCCCA.
The NESCAC Champion in the 1,500-meters, Farrington was a two-time track & field All-American and earned All-America honors in cross country in 2023. He is the first Bates men’s cross country and track & field athlete to earn All-America honors in all three seasons in the same school year. Farrington also captured the Division III New England Championship in the mile during the 2024 indoor season. A captain of both the cross country and track & field teams, Farrington claimed multiple all-region honors in both sports throughout his career and was a three-time All-NESCAC runner.
John Meehan, Tufts Men’s Golf
Meehan graduated from Tufts with summa cum laude honors, a 3.85 GPA, and a degree in biomedical engineering. A National Merit Scholar Finalist, Meehan was a seven-time Dean’s List student and three-time NESCAC All-Academic selection. He was presented with the 2024 Adrian Misic Prize Recipient, which is awarded to a student for strengths in athletics, academics, and altruism.
Through his Capstone Project in Machine Learning and Biology, Meehan became a published author of two articles in the Journals of Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, and Diagnostics. He also interned as a software engineer at Lodestone Biomedical and The MathWork while also performing a self-designed research project in Bioinformatics and Genetic Research and worked as a lab assistant in a cell culture lab. Meehan was the player coordinator for the men’s golf team’s involvement with Team Impact and a member of Tufts’ SAAC group.
A four-time All-NESCAC golfer and the 2021 NESCAC Co-Rookie of the Year, Meehan also earned PING All-Region Team honors in 2024. Meehan was the co-medalist of the 2024 NESCAC Championship to help the Jumbos capture the team title for the first time in program history and make the team’s first NCAA appearance.
David Murray, Connecticut College Men’s Basketball
Murray graduated from Conn. College with a degree in economics. He was an Ambassador for Team Impact on campus and a team leader for the Athletes of Color Coalition as well as being responsible for coordinating team training in the One Love program.
A co-captain of the men’s basketball team, Murray was presented with Conn. College’s Anita L. DeFrantz Male Athlete of the Year Award in 2024. He was a two-time All-NESCAC performer and garnered Player of the Year honors in 2024 while also being named the NABC Region I Player of the Year. Murray also became the first player in program history to earn NABC All-America First Team honors.
About the DIIICA: The Division III Commissioners Association became a stand-alone organization in January 1992, after previously serving as a combined group with the Division II Commissioners Association. The association is comprised of 43 NCAA Division III conferences, representing over 440 public and private institutions. The purpose of the DIIICA is to empower commissioners to effectively lead their conferences and positively impact Division III intercollegiate athletics by identifying challenges, developing solutions, and taking collective action that reflects the conference perspective.
