2014 #HLGolf Awards Announced, Championships Preview

2014 Horizon League Men's & Women's Golf Statistics

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla—The 2014 Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships takes place Friday-Sunday, with play being held at the Mission Inn Golf & Tennis Resort in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.

Before the championship commences, the season-ending awards were handed out on Thursday night at the annual team banquet.

For the third year in a row, Cleveland State’s Andrew Bailey was named the Men’s Golf Player of the Year. It is just the second time in league history that a player has taken three player of the year honors in a row. The last to do so was Detroit’s Mark Sommerfeld (2006-08). Bailey averaged a League best 72.07 strokes per round this season, while posting two victories on the season. Bailey opened the season with a victory at the Turning Stone Tiger Intercollegiate, posting a 54-hole total of 207 (66-70-71-207). His second victory came at the Dayton Flyer Invitational where his 36-hole total 136 (67-69-136) was good for a three-shot victory. Bailey began his CSU career by being named Newcomer of the Year in 2011.

Joining Bailey on the All-League team were Michael Balcar (Cleveland State), Bill Gaffney (Youngstown State), Brendan Leonard (Detroit), Wil Wittmann (Detroit), Kyle Henning (Valparaiso) and Evan Bowser (Oakland).

Bailey earned his fourth All-League honor while Balcar, Leonard and Henning earned their second honor.

Lindsey Lammers of Detroit earned Women’s Golf Player of the Year for the second time in as many years. Lammers follows Samanatha Formeck of Youngstown State (2009-10) and Michelle Nash of Butler (2011-12) to win the award in back-to-back years. Lammers averaged a League best 75.83 strokes per round this season. She posted two victories this season, both of which came in the spring, and has finished in the top-10 in every event she’s entered (10).

Lammers was joined on the All-League team by Michelle Kleckner (Valparaiso), Allyson Hackman (Cleveland State), Kassandra Komma (Oakland), Aislynn Merling (Youngstown State), Christina Thorne (Detroit) and Olivia Richards (Detroit).

Lammers earned her third All-League honor, while Kleckner and Thorne registered their second.

Valparaiso’s Peter Webb was named the Freshman of the Year. In his rookie season, Webb averaged 74.85 strokes per round which includes a pair of top-10 finishes. For the women, Sarah Thompson of Detroit was named Freshman of the Year after a regular season that included four top-10 finishes, including a season best fifth-place finish at the Dayton Fall Invitational (75-76-151).

Oakland’s Russ Cunningham and Detroit’s Terri Anthony-Ryan shared Women’s Coach of the Year honors as the vote was a split for the second time in conference history.

Tony Joy of Youngstown State was named Men’s Coach of the Year. It marks the first Coach of the Year honor for Joy.

Women’s All-League (ties are not broken)
Lindsey Lammers, Detroit
Michelle Kleckner, Valparaiso
Allyson Hackman, Cleveland State
Kassandra Komma, Oakland
Aislynn Merling, Youngstown State
Christina Thorne, Detroit
Olivia Richards, Detroit

Women’s Player of the Year: Lindsey Lammers, Detroit
Women’s Freshman of the Year:  Sarah Thompson, Detroit
Women’s Coach of the Year:  Russ Cunningham, Oakland & Terri Anthony-Ryan, Detroit

Men’s All-League (ties are not broken)
Andrew Bailey, Cleveland State
Michael Balcar, Cleveland State
Bill Gaffney, Youngstown State
Brendan Leonard, Detroit
Wil Wittmann, Detroit
Evan Bowser, Oakland
Kyle Henning, Valparaiso

Men’s Player of the Year: Andrew Bailey, Cleveland State
Men’s Freshman of the Year: Peter Webb, Valparaiso
Men’s Coach of the Year:  Tony Joy, Youngstown State

Championship Preview
The Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships is a 54-hole tournament played over three days with the men playing the El Campeon Course and the women playing the Las Colinas course. The El Campeon course plays as a par 72, 6,776 yards. The Las Colinas course plays as a par 73, 5,975 yards.

Last year’s champion on the women’s side, Allison Mitzel of Youngstown State, returns to defend her title. As a freshman Mitzel won the championship by seven shots (77-71-73-221). In total, four of the top five finishers in last year’s championship return.

Detroit sports three golfers in the top-seven in scoring average including league-leading Lammers (75.83), Thorne (79.68) and Richards (79.71).

Komma, who ranks second in the league in scoring at 78.22, has the lowest 54-hole score of 221 (75-74-72) which came at the Central District Invitational.

As the defending champions, Detroit enters the tournament seeded No. 1, while newcomer Oakland is the No. 2 seed.

Youngstown State, led by first-year head coach Nate Miklos, is the No. 3 seed, Cleveland State is the No. 4 seed, Valparaiso is the No. 5 seed, UIC is the No. 6 seed, and Green Bay rounds out the field as the No. 7 seed.

In the tournament’s history, there has been only one repeat women’s champion.

On the men’s side, five of the eight members of the all-tournament team return to the El Campeon course. Last year’s defending champion, Thomas Wettstein of Valparaiso, returns to defend his title. The left-handed golfer posted a four-stroke victory in 2013 (72-72-70-214).

Brandon Pluchinsky, who tied the Horizon League Championship record with a 66 last year, returns for Youngstown State. The Penguins have a league-best four golfers ranked inside the top-12 in scoring average.

Bailey is the only league golfer this season to crack the 210 barrier for 54-holes, as the senior fired both a 207 (66-70-71) at the Turning Stone Tiger Intercollegiate and a 208 at the Cleveland State Invitational (70-70-68).

Valparaiso, last year’s champion, enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed, while Bailey and the Vikings are the No. 2 seed.

Youngstown State is the No. 3 seed, Detroit is the No. 4, Green Bay is the No. 5 seed, Oakland the No. 6 seed, and Wright State rounds out the field as the No. 7 seed.

In each of the last four years, four different men’s schools have taken home first-place.

The seeds for the seven-team fields are determined by rankings provided by Golfstat.

The first round of both championships begins at 7:30 a.m. ET. Live scoring and tee-times via Golfstat are available for both the men and women.

The champion for both the men’s and women’s teams advances to the NCAA Tournament. The top placing male individual also advances to the NCAA Tournament.