Wayland Baptist’s Tom Harp was named Golf Coaches Association of America NAIA Central Region Coach of the Year.

Harp, now in his 21^st year at Wayland, was honored after guiding the Pioneers to a ranking as high as No. 3 in the NAIA last season when they captured four tournament victories, including the Innisbrook Invitational in Palm Harbor, Fla., the TPC San Antonio Shootout, and the Texas Intercollegiate in Fort Worth. The Pioneers finished third at the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament – which also featured No. 8 Texas Wesleyan, No. 12 Oklahoma City and No. 16 Southwestern Christian – and qualified for the NAIA National Championships where they narrowly missed the 36-hole cut.

Under Harp, Wayland has qualified for nationals as a team every year except two since 2003. The only years the Pioneers didn’t qualify as a team were 2011, when they were represented by individual Michael Loppnow, and last year when they event was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Wayland finished the season ranked seventh in the NAIA.

The GCAA regional coaches awards are presented in conjunction with Golf Pride Grips.

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NORMAN, Okla. – The 24 honorees for the 2021 All-Nicklaus Team presented by True Spec Golf have been announced by the Golf Coaches Association of America. Players selected represent Divisions I, II, III, NAIA and NJCAA, and are being recognized for their outstanding play during the 2020-21 collegiate season.

The All-Nicklaus Team was created in 2008, and is not only named for history’s greatest player, Jack Nicklaus, but also to pay tribute to his long-time support of collegiate and amateur golf. Nicklaus, a Big Ten and NCAA Champion at The Ohio State University, helped inspire and create the Jack Nicklaus Award in 1988 and it is now presented to the National Player of the year in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, as well as NAIA and NJCAA. Award recipients have combined for over 200 victories worldwide and claimed 23 major championships.

The All-Nicklaus Team is comprised of Ludvig Åberg (Texas Tech), Alberto Avila (Erskine), Andrew Beckler (Washburn), Cecil Belisle (South Mountain), Sam Bennett (Texas A&M), Dan Bradbury (Lincoln Memorial), Lucas Cena (Keiser), Eugenio Chacarra (Oklahoma State), Pierceson Coody (Texas), Harry Crockett (Hutchinson), Peter Fountain (North Carolina), Nick Gabrelcik (North Florida), Noah Goodwin (SMU), Ryan Hall (South Carolina), Will Hocker (Webster), James Mishoe (Guilford), James Morgan (Kirkwood), John Pak (Florida State), Ben Partridge (Hutchinson), Dawson Peters (South Carolina Beaufort), Turk Pettit (Clemson), Ruan Pretorius (Point), Davis Thompson (Georgia), Rob Wuethrich (Illinois Wesleyan).

2021 All-Nicklaus Team presented by True Spec Golf

Ludvig Åberg, Texas Tech
Alberto Avila, Erskine
Andrew Beckler, Washburn
Cecil Belisle, South Mountain
Sam Bennett, Texas A&M
Dan Bradbury, Lincoln Memorial
Lucas Cena, Keiser
Eugenio Chacarra, Oklahoma State
Pierceson Coody, Texas
Harry Crockett, Hutchinson
Peter Fountain, North Carolina
Nick Gabrelcik, North Florida
Noah Goodwin, SMU
Ryan Hall, South Carolina
Will Hocker, Webster
James Mishoe, Guilford
James Morgan, Kirkwood
John Pak, Florida State
Ben Partridge, Hutchinson
Dawson Peters, South Carolina Beaufort
Turk Pettit, Clemson
Ruan Pretorius, Point
Davis Thompson, Georgia
Rob Wuethrich, Illinois Wesleyan

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WICHITA FALLS – Midwestern State’s Jake Doggett and Garrett Leek earned PING All-South Central Region first-team honors as released Monday by the Golf Coaches’ Association of American (GCAA).
 
Doggett gained all-region honors for the third consecutive season after posting a 71.36 stroke average and carrying a national GolfStat ranking of 26th.
 
The junior from Hutto joins Derek Oland as the second golfer in program history to claim all-region honors three times and became just the third MSU golfer to win the Lone Star Conference individual title joining Oland (2014, 2015) and Santiago Gomez (2013).
 
Doggett posted par-or-better scores in 14 of his 25 competition rounds in 2020-21 which included six tallies in the 60s. He carded 80 birdies on the way to setting the program’s low single season par-3 scoring at 2.98.
 
He closed the campaign with an 87.8 finish percentage finishing in the Top 10 in seven of nine tournaments with runner-up finishes at the UT Tyler Fall Invitational and the Texas A&M-Commerce Lion Invitational.
 
Doggett fell just short of a NCAA Division II Championship berth after placing sixth in the D2 West/South Central Regional.
 
Leek enjoyed a sensation campaign leading the Mustangs with a 70.89 to rank ninth in the GolfStat national rankings to earn LSC Player of the Year honors.
 
The junior from Brock set a program record with 19 par-or-better scores including nine scores in the 60s in 28 competition rounds. He also set a program standard with a 93.6 finish percentage.
 
Leek posted five top-five finishes in seven of his 10 tournaments including wins at the RJGA South Central Preview and UT Tyler Fall Invitational.
 
He boasted a phenomenal stroke average of 69.0 while posting scores in the 60s in eight of his 11 rounds last fall.
 
Leek logged a team-high 98 birdies on his way to setting a program record low season par-4 scoring average at 3.99.

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PLAINVIEW – Veteran Wayland Baptist volleyball coach Jim Giacomazzi will take on the added duties of coaching the Pioneer women’s golf team.

“Coach Giacomazzi is an experienced motivator and coach of volleyball and golf at the collegiate level. We are fortunate to have a coach that can move into this golf position who understands the sport and the program,” said Dr. Claude Lusk, WBU senior vice president of operations and student life. “Coach Giacomazzi will pursue excellence with a passion and our team will be better for it.”

Giacomazzi, who has more than 400 career volleyball victories and will begin his 15^th season coaching WBU volleyball in the fall, also is no stranger to coaching golf, having overseen the Pioneer women’s program on two previous occasions, most recently in 2017-18.

An avid golfer for the past 25 years, Giacomazzi owns a 2.1 handicap and has won the championship at Canyon Country Club “seven or eight times.” He formerly played USGA events.

Giacomazzi said he is looking forward to sharing his knowledge of the game.

“I enjoy golf, and I enjoy teaching it. I especially enjoy the mental part of the game. Once you have the skills, it’s how you can handle the pressure you put on yourself so you can perform to your abilities.”

He added, “The challenge always is to get a team to work as one. In golf, individual hard work matters and then you have to have enough concern and care for your teammates to encourage them to be successful, too.”

Giacomazzi, who replaces Andy Ellis after he accepting a coaching position at NCAA Division II Angelo State, has guided the WBU women’s golf team to three of its five NAIA National Championships appearances, including an all-time best eighth-place showing in 2013. Also under Giacomazzi, Wayland finished 19^th in 2011 and 10^th in 2012.

The 2015 Pioneers matched the program’s all-time best eighth-place nationals finish then tied for 11^th the following year. Wayland just missed qualifying for nationals in 2019 and again this past spring when the Pioneers finished third in the Sooner Athletic Conference and were ranked the equivalent of 27^th in the NAIA. (The 2020 NAIA National Championships were cancelled due to COVID-19.)

Wayland returns three golfers from last year’s squad, including senior Chante van Zyl, an all-conference player. She’ll be joined by junior Brooklyn Nix and sophomore Morgan Rutledge.

“We have a solid core that gives us a chance to go back to nationals again,” Giacomazzi said.

The coach said he is “heavy on the recruiting trail.

“I’m working hard to find that fourth and fifth players on our team that can get us to the national championships.”

Wayland’s women’s golf program began in 2008-09. That season, Charlotte Guilleux tied for third place at nationals, the best individual showing at the national tournament for a Wayland golfer.

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