Five PBC Men's Golfers Named All-American

NORMAN, OKLA -- Five Peach Belt Conference men's golfers have been named PING All-Americans by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).  UNC Pembroke's Jordan Walor and Matt Atkins were previously announced as first-team All-Americans by the organization in May, and added Georgia College's Patrick Garrett and the Georgia Southwestern duo of Craig Gibson and J.P. Griffin on Tuesday.  Six other golfers were named Honorable Mention: USC Aiken's Hayden Letien, UNC Pembroke's Jonathan McCurry, Flagler's Greg Mergel, Armstrong's Matt Motes and Georgia College's Taylor Smith and Ryan Trocchio.

An All-PBC First Team pick, Garrett led the Georgia College squad with a 72.6 stroke average in his 11 starts. The junior had three top-10 finishes, including his victory at the 2012 Armstrong Pirate Invitational. At the SuperRegional, he took 19th at even par. The Bobcats had a phenomenal 2011-12 campaign, winning an NCAA South/Southeast SuperRegional Championship without the benefit of a single senior. The squad advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals as well.

For Georgia Southwestern, Griffin capped off a successful junior season with a record-setting postseason run. He posted a 5-under 211 at the South/Southeast Super Regional and finished the three-day event tied for second to earn the program's first-ever birth in the NCAA Division II National Championships. At the national tournament he proceeded to finish 4-under and tied for ninth place in the 108-player event.

Griffin took home second place at the season-opening Kiawah Island Invitational and was co-champion at the Frito Lay/Taco Bell Intercollegiate on Feb. 19.

The Glennville native ended the year 12th in the Peach Belt Conference with a 73.4 scoring average. He posted five top-five finishes in 12 events. Of the 30 rounds played in 2011-12, he finished under par 10 times. Griffin was named to the PBC All-Conference Second Team and earned PBC Golfer of the Week honors on Feb. 23.

The All-America distinction capped a tremendous senior campaign for Gibson. He was the individual medalist for the second time in three years at the 17-team, 90-player, Aflac/Cougar Invitational in the fall. He took second place at the 8-team Alabama State Fall Golf Classic and finished third at the PBC Championships.

Gibson fired the 'Canes low round of the school year on Mar. 20 with a 65 in the third round of the Bobcat Intercollegiate in Milledgeville. The 65 was the second-lowest score in the PBC in 2011-12. He posted rounds of 66 (Bearcat Invitational) and 67 (Peach Belt Championships and NCAA South/Southeast Super Regional) as well. The 67 rounds were both low rounds in each respective tournament.

The Brooks, Alberta native recorded eight top-10 finishes in 12 tournaments while finishing in the top five on five occasions. Of the 31 rounds played in 2011-12, he finished under par 10 times. Overall, Gibson finished the year with the fifth-lowest scoring average in the Peach Belt at 72.7. He was named to the PBC All-Conference First Team and All-PBC Tournament Team and on Oct. 6 earned PBC Golfer of the Week honors.

Division II PING All-America Teams

First Team

Matt Atkins, USC-Aiken
Trevor Blair, CSU-Stanislaus
Josh Creel, Central Oklahoma
Adam Hedges, Belmont Abbey
Carlos Rodriguez, West Florida
Marcelo Rozo, Lynn
Kyle Souza, Chico State
Ben Taylor, Nova Southeastern
Jordan Walor, UNC-Pembroke

Second Team

Alex Carpenter, Abilene Christian
Ty Chandler, North Alabama
Eric Frazzetta, Chico State
Jake Greer, North Alabama
Zack Kempa, IUP
Jim Knous, Colorado School of Mines
Oscar Lengden, Nova Southeastern
Daniel Stapff, Barry

Third Team

Ricardo Celia, Nova Southeastern
Kyle Chappell, Dixie State
Daniel Claytor, Barton
Rob Damschen, CSU-Stanislaus
Patrick Garrett, Georgia College
Craig Gibson, Georgia Southwestern
Dylan Goodwin, Western Washington
J.P. Griffin, Georgia Southwestern

Honorable Mention

Matthew Campbell, Newberry
Spencer Cole, Rollins
Case Gard, Florida Southern
Marcelo Huarte, Barry
Luke Kwon, St. Edward’s
Hayden Letian, USC-Aiken
Chris McCracken, CSU-Stanislaus
Jonathan McCurry, UNC-Pembroke
Greg Mergel, Flagler
Cy Moritz, Central Missouri
Matt Motes, Armstrong Atlantic State
Santiago Quintero, St. Edward’s
Kevin Rei, Chico State
Travis Russell, Hawaii-Hilo
Dillon Rust, Central Oklahoma
Marcus Segerstrom, Barry
Taylor Smith, Georgia College
Alex Sobstad, CSU-Monterey Bay
Paul Tighe, Wilmington
Ryan Trocchio, Georgia College
Nick Varelia, Western Washington
Daniel Young, Lynn


GCAA/PING All-Southeast Team

Liam Ashby, Carson-Newman
Matt Atkins, USC Aiken
Matthew Campbell, Newberry
Daniel Claytor, Barton
Joel Dahlenburg, Flagler
Patrick Garrett, Georgia College
Craig Gibson, Georgia Southwestern
J.P. Griffin, Georgia Southwestern
Gavin Hay, Carson-Newman
Adam Hedges, Belmont Abbey
Eric Kennedy, Lincoln Memorial
Jonathan Kim-Moss, Carson-Newman
Matt Motes, Armstrong Atlantic State
Antoine Le Saux, Wingate
Jonathan McCurry, UNC-Pembroke
Greg Mergel, Flagler
Jordan Walor, UNC-Pembroke