Brescia predicted as River States Conference Men's Golf preseason favorite
FLORENCE, Ky. -- Brescia (Ky.) University is predicted to repeat as conference champions, thus after being tabbed the favorite in the 2016-17 River States Conference Men's Golf Preseason Coaches' Poll.
The Bearcats won the conference title last season to qualify for the NAIA national tournament and return four of their top five performers. Brescia received six of the 11 first-place votes and a conference-high 84 points in the voting conducted by the league's 11 men's golf head coaches.
The River States Conference was known as the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, but the league changed its name effective July 1, 2016. The conference's men's golf preseason coaches' poll is usually conducted in the spring, but it was moved up to the fall season to coincide with the NAIA's preseason polls coming out next week. The RSC men's golf championship will be held in the spring season.
Point Park (Pa.) University finished a close second in the preseason poll with 81 points and two first-place votes. The Pioneers return all five players from last year's team, which was second at the conference tournament, just four strokes behind Brescia.
Asbury (Ky.) University placed third in the poll with 77 points and garnered two first-place votes. The Eagles were third place in the spring championship last year but had won the fall preview earlier in the year.
Cincinnati Christian is fourth in the poll with 57 points. The Eagles boast two all-conference players, including individual conference medalist and NAIA qualifier Taylor Suggs from last year.
IU East was picked fifth with 56 points, and WVU Tech was sixth with 54 points, including the remaining first-place vote. IU Kokomo (37 points) came in seventh, Ohio Christian (34 points) came in eighth and Midway (Ky.) (30 points) came in ninth. Alice Lloyd (Ky.) had 23 points and Carlow (Pa.) 17 points for 10th and 11th.
The River States Conference will conduct its men's golf fall preview tournament Oct. 10-11, 2016 and hold its championship tournament in the spring season on April 17-18, 2017. The winner of the spring tournament will qualify for the NAIA National Championship along with the individual medalist.
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