JONESBORO, Ark. (5/5/16) – The Arkansas State men's golf team tied a school record by placing three student-athletes on the 2016 All-Sun Belt Conference Team, and Mike Hagen became the Red Wolves' first head coach to ever be named the league's Coach of the Year.
Representing A-State on the all-conference team, announced Thursday by the league office, were sophomores Andrew Huseman and Tanner Napier as second team selections and senior Oswin Schlenkrich as an honorable mention choice. The three Arkansas State players to find a place on the All-Sun Belt squad tied the 1996 team (David Faught, Brian McCann, Jason Jones) for the most in school history.
First-year A-State head coach Mike Hagen has orchestrated one of the nation's biggest turnarounds this season, leading the Red Wolves to a No. 80 national ranking after ending last year No. 194. Their current ranking is the program's best since the 2001-02 squad ended the season at No. 75.
Arkansas State broke the school record for outright tournament championships with five and tied for another before falling in a sudden death playoff. The Red Wolves finished third place or better in nine of their 12 tournaments as they built a 124-23-2 record. Additionally, the team's third-place showing at the Sun Belt Conference Championship tied its second-best finish ever at the tourney, taking third place in 1995 as well.
Huseman, who played for Hagen last season at Indian Hills (Iowa) Community College, made an immediate impact for the Red Wolves with six top-five finishes in nine tournaments played. He won the Grover Page Classic and completed the season with a team-best 72.23 stroke average, which also ranks fifth in the Sun Belt.
Napier had a breakout season in 2016, improving his stroke average from 74.79 as a freshman to 72.42 this year. He was named the Sun Belt Conference Golfer of the Month on March 2 after taking medalist honors at the Loyola Intercollegiate with an 18-under-par 189. Napier went on to complete the season with five top-10 finishes, including tied for fourth place at the Sun Belt Championship alongside Huseman.
Schlenkrich enjoyed the best season of his career as a senior, averaging 72.60 strokes per round and collecting nine top-25 finishes. He ended the year with top-10 outings in the three consecutive tournaments, including a seventh-place showing at the Sun Belt Conference Championship. He ranks 10th in the league in stroke average behind Huseman and Napier, who is currently seventh in the stat.
2015-16 All-Sun Belt Conference Men's Golf Team
First Team All-Conference: Max Herrmann (Georgia State), Alexander Herrmann (Georgia State), JJ Grey (Georgia State), Haraldur Magnus (UL Lafayette), Peter Staalbo (South Alabama), Luke Moser (Troy)
Second Team All-Conference: Patrick Moriarty (Appalachian State), Matias Calderon (Little Rock), Andrew Huseman (Arkansas State), Tanner Napier (Arkansas State), Steven Fisk (Georgia Southern), Clay Vannoy (Troy)
Honorable Mention All-Conference: Oswin Schlenkrich (Arkansas State), Velten Meyer (UL Monroe), Aaron Guanlao (UT Arlington), Chase Ambrose (Texas State), Jared Bettcher (Troy), Calum Masters (Troy)
Men's Golfer of the Year: JJ Grey, Georgia State
Men's Freshman of the Year: Steven Fisk, Georgia Southern
Men's Golf Head Coach of the Year: Mike Hagen, Arkansas State
