Andrew Willihan

Bio:

A 2006 graduate of the University of Maine at Farmington, Andrew Willihan was named UMF Director of Snow Sports in 2022, overseeing all skiing and snowboarding programs. In 2016 he became UMF’s Head Alpine Coach.

Willihan was named the 2022 United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) National Coach of the Year. In the 2021-2022 season, his UMF teams sent four competitors to the USCSA National Championships in Lake Placid, New York. UMF team members Ryan Brueninghaus, Samuel Scheff and Carson Theriault, combined to finish sixth in the Men’s Freeski team combined — UMF’s best showing in Freeski at the USCSA National Championships. Included in that combined score was a second-place showing in the Rail Jam, also a team-best performance at USCSA Nationals by the Beavers.

On the Alpine slopes; four UMF competitors, Simon Spear, Abbey Landry, Zach Berliner and Jacob Roy; earned All-Reynolds Division honors. Berliner went on to finish seventh in the GS at the USCSA Eastern Championships at Sugarloaf.

Willihan was named Eastern Region Coach of the Year in just his 2nd year as coach (2018) with the UMF  Beavers for collaboration amongst conferences and teams. His passion for bringing skiers, teams and conferences closer together to support the ski racing community is at the heart of his philosophy. Coach Willihan led UMF to 3 Conference titles, 2 Overall Men and Women Combined Ricker Cup titles, and qualified the Men’s Alpine team to the National Championship in 2020 — just 4 years after taking the reins.

He holds certifications as a USSA Alpine Coach (Level 300), USSA Skills Quest Evaluator, and USSA Alpine Official (Referee-2). Willihan has been on the Board of Maine Alpine Racing Association since 2014. He also holds a Level 2 American Canoe Association (ACA) Tandem and River Certification.

Degree:

B.S., University of Maine at Farmington