ANDERSON, S.C. – On the heels of a year that saw the Trojans earn seven tournament championships - including an unprecedented five straight at one point – and their first-ever South Atlantic Conference title, the nationally top-ranked Anderson men's golf team is set to compete at this week's NCAA Division II Men's Golf Southeast Region Championship.
The 54-hole Southeast and South Region Championships will be hosted concurrently by Nova Southeastern at the Grande Oaks Golf Club in Davie, Fla., Thursday-Saturday, on a par 71, 6,275-yard layout.
The course was also the site of last year's NCAA Division II South Region Women's Golf Championship, where the Trojan women finished fourth and became the first team to earn a berth in the NCAA National Championships.
"We are excited to be going to regionals but also understand how many great teams are in our region," said Anderson Director of Golf Danny Neal. "The guys have had an historical year and I hope we can continue to prove that we belong at nationals by playing at a high level this week."
After competing in the 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008 NCAA Atlantic Regionals, the Trojans are making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 15 years. Behind former standout Adam Sheriff's three-round 222, AU claimed its highest finish (3rd) at Mooresville, N.C., in 2008. The Black and Gold recorded sixth-place performances in 2005 and 2007 after notching back-to-back fifth-place finishes in 2003-04.
The Trojans are squaring off against a formidable field of opponents that includes six of the top-10 teams in the country – and an impressive eight more in the top-25, among the 19 other schools represented in the tourney.
Neal, who was named South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year just prior to the SAC Championship in mid-April, will see his top-ranked Trojans square off against second-ranked Barry, No. 3 West Florida, fifth-ranked North Georgia, No. 6 Nova Southeastern, No. 8 Georgia Southwestern, 12th-ranked Clayton State, No. 14 Lincoln Memorial, 16th-ranked Tampa, 20th-ranked Carson-Newman, No. 21 Barton, 22nd-ranked Limestone, No. 23 Lander and 25th-ranked Saint Leo in the battle for the Southeast/South Region title.
Anderson (South Atlantic), Georgia Southwestern (Peach Belt), West Florida (Gulf South), Barton (Conference Carolinas), Barry (Sunshine State) and Spring Hill (Southern Intercollegiate) each captured automatic bids after winning their conference titles.
Nearly a third of the 20-team field hails from the Sunshine State Conference (Barry, Lynn, Tampa, St. Leo, Fla. Southern, Nova Southeastern), while the Peach Belt Conference (North Georgia, Georgia Southwestern, Clayton State, Lander, USC Aiken) garnered five bids. The South Atlantic Conference (Anderson, Lincoln Memorial, Carson-Newman, Limestone) placed four teams in the tourney, while the Gulf South Conference (West Florida, Lee, Shorter) collected three bids and Conference Carolinas, along with the Southern Intercollegiate each captured one bid apiece, in Barton and Spring Hill, respectively.
AU became a fixture at the top of the national rankings after opening the year with five consecutive tournament titles and maintained its grip on the No. 1 spot by winning two of its final three tournaments, including the SAC Championship.
Lee is the defending national champion after winning its first title a year ago, while Florida Southern has won the national championship an astounding 13 times and has finished as runners-up on four occasions since 1963. The Mocs are seeking their first title since 2017 and just their second since 2010. USC Aiken won three consecutive national championships from 2004-06, while Barry, Nova Southeastern, West Florida, Lynn and Tampa have each taken home the championship hardware on two occasions, with the Spartans looking for their first title since going back-to-back in 1987 and 1988.
In addition to the 20 teams gathering in the Sunshine State, there are eight golfers that qualified individually for the tournament - Martin Gruendemann and Bernard Meyer from Columbus State, Killian Ryan from Coker, Erskine's
Tom Bastow, JJ Zimmer from Union, Palm Beach Atlantic's Andrew Riley, JJ Logue from Mississippi College and Delta State's Pongbhop Jamornsrianan.
The renowned regional field includes three of the top four golfers in the nation, seven of the country's top-10 golfers and nearly half of the nation's top-25 golfers, beginning with Lee's Beck Burnette, who is the No. 2-ranked golfer in the nation. West Florida's Elias Haavisto, another junior, is tabbed third nationally, while AU's Reece Coleman and Calahan Keever are ranked fourth and sixth, respectively in the nation.
Among the individuals, Union's Zimmer is the highest-ranked individual (14th) competing this week, while Palm Beach Atlantic's Riley is tabbed 22nd in the country.
Barry's A.J. Ewart, who is ranked seventh nationally, is the defending individual champion, while West Florida's Patrick Poate shared third place a year ago. North Georgia's Evan Thompson and Stephen Kinsel, who finished in a tie for third and seventh, respectively, last year are back for yet another appearance.
The Trojans began the year with an incredible streak of five consecutive tournament championships, including the North Georgia Intercollegiate, Columbus State's Cougar Invitational, the Camden Intercollegiate, their own Mccoy-Wright Currahee Collegiate and LMU's Spring Kick-off before finishing fourth at Georgia Southwestern's Hurricane Invitational. AU bounced back to win the Bearcat classic before closing out the regular season with a seventh-place performance at LMU's Tennessee River Rumble.
Then, behind South Atlantic Conference Freshman of the Year, Alejandro de Castro's three-stroke victory and with Reece Coleman and Calahan Keever sharing the runner-up spot, AU claimed its first-ever SAC Championship, and with the title, the Trojans earned the league's automatic bid and secured their sixth overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Coleman, a four-time All-Conference honoree and the SAC Golfer of the Year, has carded five of the top-seven 54-hole scores in program history this season. He is currently ranked fourth nationally by Golfstat and was named SAC Golfer of the Week in early March after winning Georgia Southwestern's Hurricane Invitational. He finished as runner-up at Columbus State's Cougar Invitational and owns four third-place finishes this season, while posting seven overall finishes in the top-3 and didn't finish lower than 15th in his other two tournaments. The Port Elizabeth, South Africa native fired a season-low, 5-under 65 at the Cougar Invitational and carded 5-under 67s on two occasions.
Keever, who is currently tabbed sixth nationally by Golfstat and earned First-Team All-SAC accolades, claimed wins at both the North Georgia Intercollegiate and at the LMU Spring Kickoff and earned SAC Golfer of the Week recognition in February. The Greenville native owns six top-10 finishes and finished lower than 13th just once in eight tournaments. In addition to setting the school record with his 9-under 63 in the final round of LMU's Spring Kick-off, he has fired three additional rounds of 5-under 67s, along with a 4-under 68 and three 3-under 69s.
De Castro, who collected SAC Freshman of the Year honors last month and is ranked 43rd nationally by Golfstat. He owns a 72.30 stroke average through nine tournaments after firing a season-low 67 on two occasions and also carding a 68 during the second round of the SAC Championship. A native of St. Esteve Sesrovires, Spain, he posted five finishes inside the top-17, including three inside the top-7 and finished lower than 27th just once in nine tournaments.
Daniel Coker, a junior from Hartsville, owns a 74.57 unadjusted stroke average through seven tournaments and notched a season-low 71 on four occasions, including the final round of the SAC Championship. He also firing an even-par 72 three times and recorded an 18th-place finish at the North Georgia Intercollegiate and shared 31st place at Lander's Bearcat Classic.
Simon Wright, a sophomore from Lancaster, S.C., has recorded a 74.48 unadjusted stroke average, while firing a 68 in the second round of the Bearcat Classic and a 69 in the opening round of the Cougar Invitational.
Nationally, 80 teams and 30 individuals will be competing this week in regional competition of the 2023 NCAA Division II Men's Golf Championship.
The top six teams from the combined Southeast/South Regional along with the top two individuals not on an advancing team will advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships slated for May 22-26 at the Avon Lakes Golf Club in Warren, Ohio. At the finals, all 20 teams and eight individuals will complete 54 holes of stroke play.
Live scoring will be available for all three rounds, with tee times set to begin at 7:30 a.m. each morning. The Trojans are slated to begin teeing off at 10:10 a.m.
