Pete Frates to Receive 2017 NCAA Inspiration Award

The NCAA announced today that they will honor former BC baseball player Pete Frates with the 2017 NCAA Inspiration Award.

The NCAA Inspiration Award is presented to a current or former NCAA coach, administrator, or player "who, when confronted with a life-altering situation used perseverance, dedication and determination to overcome the event and most importantly, now serves as a role model to give hope and inspiration to others in similar situations." The award was created in 2002.

Frates, whose story is well known to BC and baseball fans across the country, was diagnosed with ALS in 2015, 5 years after graduating from BC. in 2014, Frates and his family helped to build up the Ice Bucket Challenge campaign. Boston athletes and local celebrities were quick to join in on the Ice Bucket Challenge, which would ultimately spread across the country. The Ice Bucket Challenge raised at least $220 million for the ALS Association and raised awareness of the disease. Earlier this year it was announced that the significant increase in donations had allowed researchers to discover one of the primary genes that causes ALS.