ROCK HILL, S.C. – Carson-Newman senior Andrew Hall and junior Dalton Reese became the first duo to named first-team All-South Atlantic Conference in four years, while coach Randy Wylie was awarded Coach of the Year accolades as the league announced its yearly all-conference teams on Wednesday afternoon.
Hall (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Reese (Warrenton, Ga.) are the first two Eagles to be named to the same first team since Jonathan Kim-Moss and Gavin Hay did so in 2013; it is the sixth time since 2000 that two Carson-Newman players have made the league's first team.
Wylie becomes the second Eagle mentor to be named the league's Coach of the Year as he follows in the footsteps of his predecessor John Minor, whom was given the accolade in 2004. Under Wylie's watch, C-N won the State Farm Intercollegiate and the Tennessee River Ramble as a team, while both Hall and Reese took home individual medalist honors during the 2015-16 season.
Freshman Jake Headrick (Maryville, Tenn.) was named Honorable Mention All-SAC to join his two teammates as an all-conference player.
"I'm thrilled for our school that I was named Coach of the Year, but the credit goes to the players," Wylie said. "As you can see by the all-conference teams, we've had a good season with three players with Andrew and Dalton being named first team and Jake being an honorable mention."
During the Saint Leo event, Hall reset the SAC record with a three-round total of 202 to finish in a tie for second. Hall's three-round score was two strokes lower than the previous record set by Catawba's Todd Sapere in 1997. The Knoxville-native shot a 65 during the second round, which was his career-low, and tied the third-lowest round in conference history.
The senior then won his next event at the North Georgia Fall Invitational at Achasta Golf Club in Dahlonega, Ga. and tied his conference record in the process and the Eagles team tied for second in the team competition. Hall carded consecutive scores of 66 in the second and third rounds for the win; the 66's tied for the fourth-lowest score in SAC history and the 10th-best in the duration of the SAC's existence.
During the spring season, Hall tied for fourth at the Bobby Nichols Intercollegiate after shooting two-over in three-round event at Sevierville Golf Club. He finished the regular season with three top-five finishes and an adjusted stroke average of 72.19.
"It's personal stuff, its individual stuff. Golf is an individual sport, but at the same time, this year, we are looking to do some special things team wise," Hall said.
Reese's junior campaign was highlighted with individual medalist honors at the Tennessee River Ramble at Tennessee National Golf Club in Lenoir City, Tenn., which ended the regular season for Carson-Newman. Reese finished the River Ramble at one-over to win by a stroke.
The Warrenton, Ga. native also finished in the top-five at the State Farm Intercollegiate with a fourth-place showing and finished third at the Spring Kickoff Intercollegiate. Twice, Reese shot a seven-under 65 to tie his teammate Hall for the team low during the season and tied for the third-lowest round in the history of the SAC. The junior finished the year with an adjusted stroke average of 73.45.
"The big thing has been just experience; this is my third year here at Carson-Newman and just playing tournament golf in college, the experience of that, once you do it long enough, you don't get nervous and you just go out there and play your game," Reese said. "If you practice well, you play well. Thanks to our coach Randy (Wylie), he has helped me a lot with my golf game the years I've known him. It's my third year here and you have to start improving at some point."
Headrick becomes the first C-N freshman to be named All-SAC since Liam Ashby was a second-team all-conference pick in 2009. The Maryville, Tenn. native's best finish during his rookie season at Mossy Creek was a tie for sixth at the Spring Kickoff Intercollegiate near Jacksonville, Fla. Headrick's low round of the year was a four-under 68 at the Saint Leo's Men's Invitational that he shot during the first round of play. The freshman ended the year with a 74.0 stroke average in 25 rounds of play, which was one of three Eagles to do so this season.
"Jake, it's big for a freshman to come in and play every tournament and play as well as he has. You can tell what that has done for our team that we are ranked 17th in the nation and he is a big part of that," Hall said of the freshman.
Tusculum's Brad Hawkins was named the league's Player of the Year, while Sam Broadhurst from Lincoln Memorial was the Freshman of the Year. The Volunteer State swept the first team honors as Hawkins, Hall, Broadhurst and Reese were joined by Tusculum's Nick Forsberg for the five-member first team.
First Team
Brad Hawkins, Tusculum
Andrew Hall, Carson-Newman
Sam Broadhurst, Lincoln Memorial
Dalton Reese, Carson-Newman
Nick Forsberg, Tusculum
Second Team
Adam Lumley, Mars Hill
Oskar Lundgren, Brevard College
Will Bundy, Coker
Cody Johnson, Lincoln Memorial
Carlos Leandro, Newberry
Honorable Mention
Jake Headrick, Carson-Newman
Tyler Stone, Wingate
John McFadyen, Queens
Lukas Ricther, Wingate
George Duncan, Lincoln Memorial
Golfer of the Year
Brad Hawkins, Tusculum
Freshman of the Year
Sam Broadhurst, Lincoln Memorial
Coach of the Year
Randy Wylie, Carson-Newman
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