CAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Weekly Awards – April 8, 2026
Dylan Smith
RICHMOND, Va. – In another week highlighted with three medalist honorees, Charleston’s
Nevill Ruiter and N.C. A&T’s
Ignacio Zapata split CAA Men’s Golfer of the Week honors, while the Cougars’
Molly Hardwick and William & Mary’s
Reagan Garnsey produced stellar efforts to also warrant Co-Women’s Golfer of the Week honors on Wednesday.
CO-MEN’S GOLFER OF THE WEEK
Nevill Ruiter, Charleston
Graduate Student | Bergen, Netherlands
Ruiter led the Cougars to their third team title of the season and a 13-stroke victory at the Giles-Spratley Collegiate in Richmond, Va., after capturing co-medalist honors with a 9-under 207. The graduate golfer unloaded seven birdies in the opening round to shoot 4-under for the afternoon. A birdie on 17 in the second round helped Ruiter continue his trend of turning in cards under par with a 1-under 71. Late round theatrics paid dividends for the Netherlands product as Ruiter birdied on three of his final six holes, including the 18
th hole, to catch Florida Gulf Coast’s Sacha Ruiz for a tie atop the leaderboard. His 17 birdies on the weekend led the field of 84.
CO-MEN’S GOLFER OF THE WEEK
Ignacio Zapata, N.C. A&T
Sophomore | Venezuela
Zapata surged in the final round of the Irish Creek Invitational, hosted by Appalachian State, jumping nine spots to claim the individual title with a 5-under 208. In a loaded field of 80 that featured six golfers ranked inside the Clipp’d Top 150, the sophomore edged out a pair of top 50 Division II golfers from the eventual team champions, Catawba, by two strokes or less. Zapata opened play with a 1-under first round, birding on four of the first nine holes. He followed up by breaking even in the second round, sinking for par or better on 17 of his 18 holes. Zapata’s comeback run to the top started with five birdies on the front nine en route to a 4-under 67 in the final round to claim medalist honors.
CO-WOMEN’S GOLFER OF THE WEEK
Molly Hardwick, Charleston
Senior | Nashville, Tenn.
Hardwick produced the top finish around the conference last week with a third-place mark that helped Charleston to a runner-up finish at the Ironwood Invitational. The senior was one of three golfers in the field of 89 to finish par or better, shooting an even 216 on the weekend. The Nashville, Tenn., native remained calm through the opening two rounds, sinking a trio of birdies in the first, followed by a pair in the second to break even par both times. She bounced back from a bogey on the first hole of round three with a trio of birdies before turning in her third even 72 of the tournament.
CO-WOMEN’S GOLFER OF THE WEEK
Reagan Garnsey, William & Mary
Freshman | Camden-Wyoming, Del.
Garnsey earned a top-five finish at the loaded Carolina Challenge Cup 1-under 139. It was the seventh-best 36-hole score in program history and one of the best on a par-70 course. The freshman opened with a 2-under 68 at UNC Finley Golf Course following five birdies. Garnsey's opening round score marked the first sub-par round of her career and also equaled the program’s benchmark on a par 70 course. She closed the event with a 1-over 71.
In addition to the success of the weekly award winners, Hofstra’s
Hank Kancher also secured medalist honors on the men’s side at the Trinity Bantams/Hartford Hawks Spring Invitational. The Pride’s freshman picked up his first career win with a 7-under 133 at the two-round event, helping Hofstra to a team title in Connecticut. He went bogey-free in the opening round and shot a 7-under 63 before breaking even in round two.
2025-26 CAA MEN’S GOLF WEEKLY AWARDS
Sept. 10: John Logan, UNCW
Sept. 17: John Logan, UNCW
Sept. 24: Camilo Marin, North Carolina A&T
Oct. 1: Talin Dingledine, William & Mary
Oct. 8: William Carr, Elon / Jack Wieler, Elon
Oct. 15: Landon Durham, Elon
Oct. 22: Erik Johansson, Campbell
Oct. 29: Eli Felty, William & Mary
Feb. 4: James Rico, UNCW
Feb. 18: Miles Eubanks, Charleston
Feb. 25: Dylan Lewis, Elon
March 4: Erik Johansson, Campbell / William Sundborn, Campbell
March 11: Drew Walker, N.C. A&T
March 18: Gray Mitchum, UNCW
March 25: Loran Appel, Charleston
April 1: William Carr, Elon / Gray Mitchum, UNCW
April 8: Nevill Ruiter, Charleston / Ignacio Zapata, N.C. A&T
2025-26 CAA WOMEN’S GOLF WEEKLY AWARDS
Sept. 10: Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C A&T
Sept. 17: Emma Hansen, Elon / Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C A&T
Sept. 24: Hannah Altman, UNCW
Oct. 1: Emilie von Finckenstein, Charleston
Oct. 8: Molly Hardwick, Charleston
Oct. 15: Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C. A&T
Oct. 22: Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C. A&T / Victoriah Kuranga, Towson
Oct. 29: Molly Hardwick, Charleston
Feb. 4: Minouche Rooijmans, UNCW
Feb. 18: Molly Hardwick, Charleston
Feb. 25: Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C. A&T
March 4: Victoria Levy, UNCW
March 18: Carys Fennessy, Charleston
March 25: Ekaterina Prokhorova, N.C. A&T
April 1: Alexis Faieta, UNCW
April 8: Molly Hardwick, Charleston / Reagan Garnsey, William & Mary
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