St. Scholastica trio headlines 2016 UMAC women's golf awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.---Following a spectacular 2016 fall season in just its second year as a collegiate program, the College of St. Scholastica used a 72-stroke lead to win the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Women's Golf Championship title Saturday afternoon at the Alexandria Golf Club. Now, the Saints are being rewarded again as they swept the top UMAC awards announced Monday.
Junior Amanda Broman took medalist honors after shooting a three-day total of 260 (+44) to finish as the top individual. Saints' sophomore Arica Sheff was also recognized for her stellar play throughout the year as the UMAC Player of the Year, while Eric Anderson was selected UMAC Coach of the Year by his peers. The UMAC also honored 10 women with All-UMAC honors with the distinction given to the top eight finishers at the UMAC Championship plus two additional honorees as voted on by the conference coaches.
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Championship Site |
Championship Results |
Broman entered the UMAC Championship with the fourth-lowest scoring average of the season, but she had all of the momentum after being named the UMAC Player of the Week the Monday leading up to the tournament. Despite shooting the fourth-highest round for the Saints on the opening day Thursday with a 92 (+20), Broman recovered Friday shaving five strokes for an 18-hole score of 87 (+15).
Saturday, Broman sealed her fate as the UMAC medalist carding a tournament-best 81 (+9) to earn medalist honors. She ended with a nine-stroke lead over teammate Sheff and ends her season with the third-best average this fall at 92.3 strokes per round.
Sheff placed second at the UMAC tournament thanks to a strong day one score of 83 (+11) that was the best of the day and second-lowest of the entire three days. The sophomore tallied a score of 269 (+53) to add to her league-best average this season. She ends the fall with a solid average of 87.1 that is over five strokes better than Kelsey Wattenhoffer of the University of Minnesota Morris.
This fall, Sheff earned three-consecutive UMAC Player of the Week awards and recorded six wins as an individual. She was undefeated against conference opponents leading up to the UMAC tournament and owns five of the top 10 low-round scores this season. Sheff is the lone UMAC player to shoot in the 70s this season recording a 78 (+7) at the Twin Ports Collegiate to kick of the season and a 79 (+7) at the Bethany Lutheran College Viking Invite prior to the conference championship event. In early September, Sheff also tied for medalist honors at the UMAC Preview with a round of 90 (+18).
Behind the leadership of Anderson, the St. Scholastica women's program showed dramatic improvement from 2015 in which the squad placed fourth at the UMAC Championship. The Saints won five of the six tournaments they played in leading up to the conference meet and finish the year boasting a 366.6 stroke average which is nearly 25 strokes better than that of Minnesota Morris (391.5). The Saints also own the top six low rounds as a team and nine of the top 10 this season.
At the tournament, the Saints couldn't be touched. They came out blazing on the opening day posting a score of 357 (+69) to take a lead by 30 strokes. The second day of the tournament saw cold temperatures and high winds, so the Saints dropped off a bit with a round of 374 (+86) but still maintained a sizeable lead. On championship day, the Saints carded a 370 (82) to complete their win with a round of 1101 (+237).
The remainder of the UMAC women's golf all-conference award winners are highlighted by repeat selections Wattenhoffer of Minnesota Morris and Mackenzie Manthei of Bethany Lutheran. Wattenhoffer turned in a score of 88 (+16) to finish fourth overall at the tournament, while Manthei owns a scoring average of 101.6 this season.
Kylie Slavin and Alexis Babcock joined teammates Broman and Sheff in the All-UMAC honoree category after finishing fifth and tied for seventh, respectively. Slavin tallied a low round of 92 (+20) on the opening day of competition, while Babcock shot a 90 (+18) Thrusday to help earn All-UMAC honors in her first collegiate season.
Katelyn Foster of Minnesota Morris joined Wattenhoffer in the spotlight after tying with Babcock for seventh – she also scored a low round of 90 (+18). Allison Bot also joined the Cougar honorees after finishing the season with a scoring average of 98.0. Ally Busick of the University of Wisconsin-Superior was recognized after shooting a low 89 (+17) Saturday to place third overall, while Shelby Eden of the University of Northwestern carded two 92 (+20) rounds to place sixth in the individual standings.
Northland College won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season, including the championship event. Each team also had one representative named to the individual sportsmanship award list.
2016 Medalist - Amanda Broman, St. Scholastica*
Player of the Year - Arica Sheff, St. Scholastica**
Coach of the Year - Eric Anderson, St. Scholastica
2016 UMAC Women's Golf All-Conference
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| Alexis Babcock |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Moose Lake, Minn. |
| Amanda Broman* |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Mankato, Minn. |
| Allison Bot |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Minneota, Minn. |
| Ally Busick |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
Osceola, Wis. |
| Shelby Eden |
Northwestern |
So. |
Elk River, Minn. |
| Katelyn Foster |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Osakis, Minn. |
| Mackenzie Manthei |
Bethany Lutheran |
So. |
Belview, Minn. |
| Arica Sheff** |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Cloquet, Minn. |
| Kylie Slavin |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
St. Michael, Minn. |
| Kelsey Wattenhoffer |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Litchfield, Minn. |
2016 UMAC Women's Golf Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award - Northland
Bethany Lutheran - Mackenzie Manthei, So., Belview, Minn.
Crown - Hunter Jontz, Fy., Des Moines, Iowa
Martin Luther - Alison Lindemann, Fy., Lewiston, Minn.
Minnesota Morris - Kari Erickson, Sr., New London, Minn.
North Central - Karissa Hildebrand, Sr., Kaukauna, Wis.
Northland - Chelsea List, Fy., Baltimore, Ohio
Northwestern - Lyndi Graff, So., Iron River, Wis.
St. Scholastica - Kylie Slavin, So., St. Michael, Minn.
Wisconsin-Superior - Ally Busick, Fy., Osceola, Wis.