Top three programs headline UMAC Men's Golf awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.---The 2017 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Men's Golf Championship provided plenty of excitement as three program fought to the very end before the College of St. Scholastica emerged victorious by just six strokes. Now, all three of those programs saw representation in the top four individual honors as part of the postseason awards – which includes 11 all-conference honorees – announced Monday.
The University of Wisconsin-Superior took two top nods with sophomore Joey Cummings earning medalist honors following his spectacular 222 (+6) finish, while the Yellowjackets' Paul Eberhardt was voted the UMAC Coach of the Year by his peers. Mac Saby of the University of Northwestern was voted the UMAC Player of the Year by the conference coaches and rookie Liam Butche was named the first-ever UMAC Men's Golf Rookie of the Year.
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Championship Site |
Championship Results |
Heading into the tournament, Cummings was among the top three golfers in scoring average this season. The sophomore saved his best for last, though, to become the first UMAC medalist for the Yellowjackets. Cummings started off hot and never looked back en route to victory. The first day saw Cummings tie Saby for the lowest round of the day at 73 (+1) after shooting two-under on the back nine.
The following day, Cummings extended his lead over the rest of the field to two strokes recording a round of 74 (+2) that was the second-best of the day behind All-UMAC teammate Ryan Peterson who shot 73 (+1) to lead Friday. Cummings sealed his fate Saturday as he tied with All-UMAC awardee and tournament runner-up Oscar Larsson with a low-round 75 (+3).
The strong play of Cummings and leadership from Eberhardt helped Wisconsin-Superior become a contender for the title this season. The Yellowjackets opened the year winning the Twin Ports Collegiate and the UMAC Preview event. They shaved nine strokes from their opening round score Friday to tie the weekend's top team round of 306 (+18). Wisconsin-Superior was just one stroke behind Northwestern in the final team standings Saturday and end the fall season second in team stroke average (315.2).
After winning the UMAC tournament a season ago, Player of the Year Saby has been one of the top performers all season. Heading into Thursday, Saby led the conference in stroke average (76.9) and finishes the fall atop the leader board at 76.7 strokes per round. The senior won back-to-back tournaments to end the regular season and had six top-10 placings this fall. His season-low round of 71 (E) is tied for the third-lowest in the UMAC this year, while his 73 (+1) Thursday was tied for a tournament best – helping him finish as All-UMAC in fourth place.
Butche was voted the conference's first-ever Rookie of the Year after placing eighth at the UMAC Championships for All-UMAC recognition. He scored three-straight rounds under 80 strokes to help the Saints capture a program-first team title. The first-year also finished the fall as a top-three scorer for the Saints with a stroke average of 79.5.
Leading the remainder of the UMAC All-Conference honorees was St. Scholastica's Marc Peterson. The senior earned his third-career All-UMAC nod after lead the Saints to victory. Peterson was third in the individual scoring after carding back-to-back rounds of 74 (+2) to open up Thursday and Friday.
Caleb Johnson and Nick Mahowald of Northwestern tied for fifth in the standings with scores of 232 (+16) to repeat as All-UMAC honorees – Johnson is also a three-time all-conference performer. Spencer Viita of St. Scholastica also carded a day-low round of 75 (+3) Saturday to match Cummings and Larsson to earn All-UMAC accolades for the second time in as many seasons.
Wisconsin-Superior saw rookie Ryan Peterson and sophomore Tyler Smith pick up All-UMAC awards, while Mason Parker of Northland also was recognized.
Bethany Lutheran 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.
2017 Medalist* - Joey Cummings, Wisconsin-Superior
Player of the Year^ - Mac Saby, Northwestern
Rookie of the Year# - Liam Butche, St. Scholastica
Coach of the Year - Paul Eberhardt, Wisconsin-Superior
2017 UMAC Men's Golf All-Conference
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| Liam Butche# |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Duluth, Minn. |
| Joey Cummings |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Duluth, Minn. |
| Caleb Johnson |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
Ham Lake, Minn. |
| Oscar Larsson |
Northland |
Jr. |
Stromsboro, Sweden |
| Nick Mahowald |
Northwestern |
So. |
Watertown, S.D. |
| Mason Parker |
Northland |
Jr. |
Salon Springs, Wis. |
| Marc Peterson |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Esko, Minn. |
| Ryan Peterson |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
Duluth, Minn. |
| Mac Saby^ |
Northwestern |
Sr. |
Lakeville, Minn. |
| Tyler Smith |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Arden Hills, Minn. |
| Spencer Viita |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Cook, Minn. |
2017 UMAC Men's Golf Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award - Bethany Lutheran
Bethany Lutheran - Sam Havnen, Jr., Fairmont, Minn.
Crown - Christian Day, Jr., Jamestown, N.D.
Martin Luther - Alex Lindemann, Sr., Lewiston, Minn.
Minnesota Morris - Hunter Balmer, Sr., Thief River Falls
North Central - Justin Johnson, Burnsville, Minn.
Northland - Mason Parker, Jr., Salon Springs, Wis.
Northwestern - Mac Saby, Sr., Lakeville, Minn.
St. Scholastica - Marc Peterson, Sr., Esko, Minn.
Wisconsin-Superior - Olle Sedelius, Sr., Gothenburg, Sweden