FOREST, Va. — Just two points separate the top-two teams and 12 points differ amongst the top-three squads in the annual ODAC Men’s Golf Spring Preseason Poll. Guilford College returns to the top of the coaches’ survey with 95 points powered by seven first place votes, but Washington and Lee University is just two tallies back after collecting the remaining four top nods. Hampden-Sydney College rounds out a tight top-three with 83 points.
Unlike in 2015, stellar conditions lent to three rounds of strong play at the 2016 ODAC Men’s Golf Championships at Stoney Creek Golf Course at Wintergreen Resort. Washington and Lee University handled the tracks on Stoney Creek’s Monocan and Shamokin nines the best, winning by 12 strokes over Guilford with a 911 (304-302-305) total. Guilford (923), Virginia Wesleyan College (925) and Hampden-Sydney College (926) made for a compelling finish after three days in the central Virginia mountains.
Washington and Lee and former VWC standout Evan Cox continued their season’s at the NCAA Division III Championships at Midvale Country Club and Mendon Golf Club in Rochester, N.Y. The six competitors put forth one of the best showings by ODAC golfers in conference history. The Generals’ team finished in a tie for third at 1208 (305-289-304-310) after four rounds of play, led by Conley Hurst tying for fourth individually at 10-over 297 (72-72-78-75).
Cox upped the ante as he tied with Addison Lambeth from Huntingdon College and Alex Wrenn from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 295 to top the leader board. In a playoff on the eighth hole, Cox birdied to lock up the individual championship.
Following the 2016 fall campaign, three ODAC squads rank inside the top-65 and six players inside the top-100 according to the weighted team and player rankings by Golfstat (www.golfstat.com). Guilford leads the ODAC’s team contingent ranked 17th overall, while Washington and Lee is just a few spots back in 24th position. Hampden-Sydeny rounds out the trio as the 65th-ranked club.
Each of the ODAC’s top-100 ranked players have work to do in the spring as they are all slotted outside the top-40. W&L’s Hurst leads the way at #41 with a 74.3 per round average. Guilford’s Zach Evens and Kendall Dunn are 49th and 76th, respectively, with 73.9 and 74.9 averages. Generals Robert Quinilty and Brian Peccie are ranked 87th and 97th with averages of 75.4 and 75.6 and surround GC’s Ty Palmer, who is 95th with a 74.4 per round average.
The fall season also marked a first for Emory & Henry College in the rebirth of its men’s golf program. The Wasps had several strong performances, led by a pair of top-five finishes from Carlos Andrade, who owns a 74.9 average. E&H will be adding women’s golf for the 2017-18 season.
The 2017 spring season begins on Monday, March 6, with Guilford and Washington and Lee competing at the Callaway Gardens Invitational. Stoney Creek will serve as the host venue for the ODAC Championships for a second straight year on April 23-25.
Listed below is the complete 2017 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.
2017 ODAC MEN’S GOLF PRESEASON POLL
(#) Denotes First Place Votes
1. Guilford College (7) 95 pts. 2. Washington and Lee University (4) 93 pts. 3. Hampden-Sydney College 83 pts. 4. Virginia Wesleyan College 69 pts. 5. Bridgewater College 62 pts. 6. Randolph-Macon College 56 pts. 7. Lynchburg College 46 pts. 8. Shenandoah University 38 pts. 9. Emory & Henry College 27 pts. 10. Roanoke College 20 pts. 11. Eastern Mennonite University 16 pts.
* Minimum three rounds played for returning leaders from the 2016 fall