NEW YORK, N.Y. – Golf World has published the results of its latest preseason College Coaches’ Polls, and not surprisingly, Allegheny is high in the mix. After finishing the 2009 spring season with a ninth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, the Gators open the new campaign ranked in that same spot.
Allegheny’s women’s golf team has enjoyed remarkable consistency and has rapidly developed into one of the nation’s top programs. The Gators have qualified for the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament all five years since the program’s inception. In the spring of 2010, Allegheny secured its fifth consecutive season with a top 20 national ranking by the National Golf Coaches Association (NCGA). The teams returns its top five players, led by sophomore standout Lizzie Blyth, who earned the highest individual national finish in program history with a 10th-place effort last season.
The collegiate national polls will be featured in the September 6 issue of Golf World Magazine and can be viewed online at: http://www.golfdigest.com/magazine/blogs/campusinsider.
Methodist, winner of 13 straight NCAA titles, is the top-ranked team in the Division III preseason poll. The Monarchs dominance continued in 2010 under new coach Tom Inczauskis. Three of last year’s starters return for 2010-11: Paige Caldwell, Gretchen McLean and Kelsey Magnine.
GOLF WORLD/NGCA COACHES’ POLL
Women’s Division III – Preseason Edition
Rank Team
1. Methodist (19)
2. Gustavus Adolphus (1)
3. Wisconsin-Eau Claire (1)
4. DePauw
5. St. Mary’s (Ind.)
6. Williams
7. George Fox
8. Amherst
9. Allegheny
10. Illinois Wesleyan
11. Southwestern
12. Olivet
13. Centre
14. Wartburg
15. St. Lawrence
16. Birmingham Southern
17. Washington U. (St. Louis)
18. Hope
19. Wellesley
20. Wheaton
21. Vassar
22. Franklin
23. SUNY Cortland
24. Whitworth
25. Carleton
Also receiving votes: McMurry, 58; St. Benedict, 48; Rhodes, 42; Piedmont, 36; Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 30; Mary Hardin-Baylor, 29; Middlebury, 25; UT-Tyler, 25; St. Olaf, 21; St. Thomas, 20; Mount Holyoke, 15; Hollins, 13; Carthage, 6; Wisconsin-Whitewater, 6; Wisconsin-Stout; Gettysburg, 3; McDaniel, 2; Oglethorpe, 2; Hardin-Simmons, 1; Nazareth, 1.