William Rainey picked up Golfer of the Year honors
COFC Headlines CAA Men's Golf Awards
Kelly McCarthy
RICHMOND, Va. (May 2, 2017) – College of Charleston senior
William Rainey was named the 2017 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Men’s Golfer of the Year while teammate
Michael Sass was named CAA Rookie of the Year in a vote of the league's nine head coaches. College of Charleston’s
Mark McEntire was named CAA Coach of the Year for the third time in four seasons.
Rainey, who earned a spot on the All-CAA First Team for the second straight year, has a scoring average of 71.55 over 33 rounds this season. He’s posted four top-10 finishes, including a third-place finish at the Clemson Invitational. At the CAA Championship, Rainey tied for fourth place and earned All-Tournament honors.
Sass capped off a solid season with an impressive performance at the CAA Championship, tying for fourth place with Rainey and earning All-Tournament Team honors. Sass posted a scoring average of 74.07 over 27 rounds this season.
McEntire led the College of Charleston to its fourth-consecutive CAA Championship. The Cougars were 23-under for the tournament, setting the CAA Championship three-round record, and turned in a 13-stroke victory. It’s the third CAA Coach of the Year honor for McEntire, who also earned the award in 2014 and 2016. The Cougars received the league's automatic NCAA Regionals berth for the fourth-straight year and will find out where they’re headed during the NCAA Selection Show on Thursday, May 4 at noon (ET) on Golf Channel.
College of Charleston senior and CAA Championship individual medalist
Parker Derby earned a spot on the All-CAA First Team along with UNCW’s
Patrick Cover and
Thomas Eldridge and James Madison’s
Ryan Cole, who earned his third such honor.
The All-CAA Second Team was comprised of Delaware’s
Marc Oliveri, Elon’s
Philip Loeb, and James Madison’s
Matt Cowgill, Shota Ozaki and
Poom Pattaropong.
2017 All-CAA Men’s Golf Teams
| First Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| Ryan Cole |
James Madison |
Sr. |
Mount Airy, Md. |
| Patrick Cover |
UNCW |
Jr. |
Huntersville, N.C. |
| Parker Derby |
College of Charleston |
Sr. |
Columbus, Ga. |
| Thomas Eldridge |
UNCW |
Jr. |
Raleigh, N.C. |
| William Rainey |
College of Charleston |
Sr. |
Charlotte, N.C. |
| Second Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| Matt Cowgill |
James Madison |
Jr. |
Weston, Mass. |
| Philip Loeb |
Elon |
So. |
Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. |
| Marc Oliveri |
Delaware |
Sr. |
Lancaster, Pa. |
| Shota Ozaki |
James Madison |
R-So. |
Tokyo, Japan |
| Poom Pattaropong |
James Madison |
Sr. |
Bangkok, Thailand |
CAA Men’s Golfer of the Year: William Rainey, College of Charleston
CAA Men’s Golf Rookie of the Year: Michael Sass, College of Charleston
CAA Men’s Golf Coach of the Year: Mark McEntire, College of Charleston
| All-Academic Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| Mark Benevento |
Delaware |
So. |
Somers Point, N.J. |
| Sean Cavanaugh |
Hofstra |
Jr. |
La Mirada, Calif. |
| Ryan Cole |
James Madison |
Sr. |
Mount Airy, Md. |
| Yoseph Dance |
Drexel |
Sr. |
Richmond, Va. |
| Thomas Eldridge |
UNCW |
Jr. |
Raleigh, N.C. |
| David Hicks |
William &Mary |
So. |
Cape May Court House, N.J. |
| Charlie May |
Elon |
Jr. |
Topsfield, Mass. |
| Philip Oweida |
College of Charleston |
Sr. |
Charlotte, N.C. |
| Juan Veloza |
Towson |
Sr. |
Cali, Columbia |