Quakers with Nine First Place Votes, Generals with Remaining Two
FOREST, Va. --- Guilford College lifted its 16th ODAC men's golf trophy in 2017 and opens the 2018 spring season as the favorite to repeat following its assignment to the top position in the ODAC Men's Golf Coaches Poll. The Quakers collected nine first place votes on the way to a table-topping 99 points. Washington and Lee University earned the remaining two top nods towards 90 total tallies, while Virginia Wesleyan University rounds out the top-three with 80 points.
Last year's conference championship was played completely in the rain with an adjusted schedule, but ODAC golfers still completed a full allotment of 54 holes. The weather didn't keep Guilford from pulling away for a 24-stroke victory over W&L with a wire-to-wire effort.
The individual medal required more rain-sogged swings as Guilford's Josh Hill and Kell Graham sat locked at 2-over 218 following three rounds of competition at Stoney Creek Golf Club at Wintergreen Resort. Just one extra hole was needed as Hill's par on #18 topped Graham's bogey effort.
RELATED: 2017 ODAC Championship Results
For the first time since 2010, the ODAC sent two teams to the natioanl championships in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla., as automatic bid-winner Guilford was joined by Washington and Lee as an at-large selection. Both teams acquitted themselves well over four rounds of competition at El Campeon Golf Course and Las Colinas Golf Course at Mission Inn Resort & Club. Washington and Lee finished 14th (1217) following team rounds of 300, 306, 306, and 305. Guilford made a run at the national crown, finishing as the runner-up (1182) by just two strokes to Wittenberg University. The Quakers carded team rounds of 300, 293, 296, and 293.
Individually, all five Quakers and three Generals placed inside the top-50. For Guilford, Hill finished 12th at 6-over 294 (71-72-77-74). Graham (76-73-73-76) and Ty Palmer (77-74-75-72) tied for 24th at 10-over 298, while Zach Evens tied for 30th at 12-over 300 (76-78-74-72). Harrison Frye capped GC's contingent tied for 42nd at 16-over 304 (81-74-74-75).
Washington and Lee's Brian Peccie (75-74-75-80) also tied for 42nd, while Luke Farley was one shot higher in a tie for 46th at 17-over 305 (76-79-75-75). Conley Hurst tied for 50th at 18-over 306 (76-77-78-75). Todd Alan McDonald (73-80-79-75) and ODAC Rookie of the Year Robert Quinilty (78-76-78-81) chimed in tied for 54th (307) and tied for 68th (313), respectively.
RELATED: 2017 NCAA Championship Team Results | 2017 NCAA Championship Individual Results
The 2017 fall season gave us a glimpse of what is to come this spring with teams and individuals alike separated by just a few strokes on the ODAC charts. Twelve players open the 2018 slate averaging 75.0 or better per round. The parity extends to the team rankings with four squads averaging fewer than 300 team strokes per round -- Guilford (292.1), Washington and Lee (296.5), Hampden-Sydney College (297.6) and Virginia Wesleyan (299.9).
That success is reflected in the Division III computer rankings by Golfstat. Seven ODAC teams and six individual players appear inside the top-100 rankings by the national outlet. Washington and Lee and Guilford are slotted inside the top-15, ranked ninth and 13th, respectively. Virginia Wesleyan in 43rd and Hampden-Sydney in 47th make it four inside the top-50. Bridgewater College sits 66th, while Lynchburg College and Randolph-Macon College are back-to-back in 87th and 88th position, respectively.
Individually, three Generals, two Quakers, and a Marlin rank 68th or better. W&L's Peccie and GC's Evens are ranked fifth and ninth in the country, respectively. The two are flipped on the ODAC average charts with Evens leading the league at 71.5 strokes per round and Peccie at 72.5. W&L's Sean Puleo (74.1) is 38th in the country, while GC's Hill (73.0) ranks 57th. W&L's Farley (75.1), who earned the ODAC/Virginia Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete award last season, holds the 66th position. Virginia Wesleyan's Carter Morgan (73.0) is ranked 68th entering the spring campaign.
RELATED: Golfstat Team Rankings | Golfstat Individual Rankings | ODAC Season Statistics
The 2018 spring season begins the week of March 5 with several tournaments on the docket. The ODAC Championship will take to a new venue this season. Bryan Park Golf & Conference Center will host the conference's men's and women's teams for three days, April 22-24, in Greensboro, N.C.
Listed below is the complete 2018 ODAC Men's Golf Preseason Poll as well as preview capsules for each of the ODAC men's golf programs. For more information on ODAC men's golf, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC's home on the Internet at www.odaconline.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow @odacathletics on Twitter and Instagram.
2018 ODAC MEN'S GOLF PRESEASON POLL | |
(#) Denotes First Place Votes | |
1. Guilford College (9) | 99 pts. |
2. Washington and Lee University (2) | 90 pts. |
3. Virginia Wesleyan University | 80 pts. |
4. Hampden-Sydney College | 72 pts. |
5. Bridgewater College | 63 pts. |
6. Lynchburg College | 49 pts. |
7. Randolph-Macon College | 48 pts. |
8. Roanoke College | 34 pts. |
9. Shenandoah University | 31 pts. |
10. Emory & Henry College | 26 pts. |
11. Eastern Mennonite University | 13 pts. |
* Minimum five rounds played for returning leaders from the 2017 fall
2018 Poll Position: 5th Head Coach: John Rogers 2017 Tournament Finish: 6th - 959 Current Golfstat Ranking: 66 Current Team Average: 301.9 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: Ocean Armstrong Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 74.7 (8) -- Ocean Armstrong 74.8 (T9) -- Luke Hill 76.4 (T23) -- Jason Spaar 76.5 (T27) -- Jake Norby 77.2 (32) -- Jeremy Pannebaker |
2018 Poll Position: 7th Head Coach: Tim Wehner 2017 Tournament Finish: 4th - 945 Current Golfstat Ranking: 88 Current Team Average: 306.4 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: None Third Team: Matt McDonagh Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 76.3 (22) -- Alex Nelson 77.4 (T34) -- Chase Childers 77.4 (T34) -- Kirby Struhar 77.6 (36) -- Peter Shaner 81.5 (54) -- Christian Fagan |
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2018 Poll Position: 11th Head Coach: Mike Yoder 2017 Tournament Finish: 11th - 1074 Current Golfstat Ranking: 243 Current Team Average: 342.0 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: None Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 81.8 (T56) -- Andrew Alderfer 84.3 (61) -- Lucas Miller 84.7 (62) -- Riley Kingsley 86.8 (64) -- Benjamin Shenk 97.8 (65) -- Chris Fenn |
2018 Poll Position: 8th Head Coach: Brian Spellane 2017 Tournament Finish: T-7th - 980 Current Golfstat Ranking: 146 Current Team Average: 316.6 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: None Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 76.8 (T29) -- Evan Diebus 78.0 (T38) -- Brad Williams 79.4 (T43) -- Nick Peters 80.8 (51) -- Andrew Edwards 81.8 (T56) -- Adam Anker |
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2018 Poll Position: 10th Head Coach: Bill Pearce 2017 Tournament Finish: 10th - 990 Current Golfstat Ranking: 136 Current Team Average: 314.2 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: Carlos Andrade Second Team: None Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 75.8 (18) -- Carlos Andrade 79.4 (T43) -- Chase Burt 79.8 (46) -- Wes Blaylock 80.0 (49) -- Ben Owen 81.2 (52) -- Blake Benson |
2018 Poll Position: 9th Head Coach: Scott Singhas 2017 Tournament Finish: T-7th - 980 Current Golfstat Ranking: 151 Current Team Average: 314.4 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: Blake Forst Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 75.5 (16) -- Doc Shulte 79.9 (T47) -- Brett Dubin 79.9 (T47) -- Joseph Gesell 80.3 (50) -- Connor McCarthy 81.4 (53) -- Blake Woodie |
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2018 Poll Position: 1st Head Coach: Justin Tereshko 2017 Tournament Finish: 1st - 889 Current Golfstat Ranking: 13 Current Team Average: 292.1 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: Zach Evens, Josh Hill Second Team: None Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 71.5 (1) -- Zach Evens 73.0 (T3) -- Josh Hill 74.8 (T9) -- Kell Graham 75.3 (T14) -- Harrison Frye 75.9 (19) -- Jack Lee |
2018 Poll Position: 3rd Head Coach: Rick Bidnick 2017 Tournament Finish: 5th - 954 Current Golfstat Ranking: 43 Current Team Average: 299.9 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: None Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 73.0 (T3) -- Carter Morgan 75.6 (17) -- Keith Cooper 76.0 (T20) -- Kevin Duffy 76.4 (T23) -- Jacob Laughlin 76.8 (T29) -- Jakob Keidel |
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2018 Poll Position: 4th Head Coach: Chad Eisele 2017 Tournament Finish: 3rd - 928 Current Golfstat Ranking: 47 Current Team Average: 297.6 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: Parker Smith (POY) Second Team: None Third Team: Bruce Shober Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 74.4 (6) -- Allen Smith 74.6 (7) -- Parker Smith 74.8 (T9) -- Austin Fockler 76.0 (T20) -- Rob Witherspoon 76.9 (31) -- Dylan Taylor |
2018 Poll Position: 2nd Head Coach: Peter Gyscek 2017 Tournament Finish: 2nd - 913 Current Golfstat Ranking: 9 Current Team Average: 296.5 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: Brian Peccie, Robert Quinilty (ROY) Second Team: None Third Team: Luke Farley (SAOY) Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 72.5 (2) -- Brian Peccie 74.1 (5) -- Sean Puleo 75.1 (13) -- Luke Farley 76.4 (T23) -- Robert Quinilty 77.3 (33) -- Austin Harrill |
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2018 Poll Position: 6th Head Coach: Michael Veverka 2017 Tournament Finish: 9th - 986 Current Golfstat Ranking: 87 Current Team Average: 303.4 Returning All-ODAC Players First Team: None Second Team: Josh Irby Third Team: None Top-5 Returning Fall Leaders -- (#) denotes ODAC rank 75.0 (12) -- Branson Terrell 75.3 (T14) -- Josh Irby 76.5 (T27) -- Carter Old 77.9 (37) -- Justin Wimmer 78.0 (T38) -- Josh Petrillo |