2019 Conference Carolinas Men's Golf Preview and Golfers to Watch

1/25/2019 12:00:00 AM

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The 2019 Conference Carolinas Men's Golf preseason poll has been released. Limestone College will enter the season as the favorite to win the Conference Carolinas Men's Golf Championship, according to Conference Carolinas coaches.

1. Limestone College: The Saints earned their 80 points from Conference coaches on eight first-place votes.

Limestone finished third in last season's Conference championship, but still landed an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Men's Golf Southeast Regional in 2018.

The Saints will look to recapture the Conference title in 2019 with the help of All-Conference Carolinas returners Max Kalfjall, Brett Krekorian and Filip Sandberg.

Players to Watch:

Zach Bishop (Jr.)
*Brett Krekorian (Sr.)
Robin Stadheim (Fr.)

2. Southern Wesleyan University: The Warriors nabbed 66 points and one first-place vote to enter 2019 ranked second.

Southern Wesleyen finished fifth at last season's championship, but have the luxury of returning of all-conference pick and reigning championship medalist Eric Shea for his sophomore season.

Players to Watch:

Ty Campbell (Jr.)
Noah Mullens (So.)
*Eric Shea (So.)

3. North Greenville University: The Crusaders enter this season ranked third with 61 points from Conference coaches.

North Greenville capture it's first Conference Carolinas Men's Golf title last season and booked an automatic trip to the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional.

Austin Duncan is the lone all-conference returner from the Crusaders championship team, but the team boasts a load of talent.

Players to Watch:

Evans Lewis (Fr.)
Seth Robertson (Sr.)

4. Barton College: The Bulldogs check-in just four points behind third place with 57 points.

Barton posted a runner-up finish last season at the Men's Golf Championship. This season the Bulldogs should be a clear contender for the league title as they return a trio of all-conference selections. The reigning Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year Bryson Boyette headlines the group, along with seniors Scott Pechacek and Justin Plane.

Players to Watch:

*Bryson Boyette (So.)
*Scott Pechacek (Sr.)
*Justin Plane (Sr.)

5. King University: The Tornado landed 54 points and are fifth to open 2019. King finished last season in sixth-place at the Golf Championship.

Players to Watch:

Alex Bradford (So.)
Robert Wilkinson (Sr.)
Leo Rigamonti (Fr.)

6. Erskine College: The Fleet picked up 48 points from Conference coaches to enter the season in sixth-place. Erskine finished eighth-place at last year's Conference Carolinas Golf Championship.

Players to Watch:

Stokes Brownlee (So.)
Jonathan Costello (Sr.)
Callum Watson (Sr.)

7. Belmont Abbey College: The Crusaders nabbed 44 points from Conference coaches to enter 2019 ranked seventh. Belmont Abbey turned in an fourth-place finish at the 2018 Golf Championship.

Players to Watch: N/A

8. University of Mount Olive: The Trojans rank eighth after collecting 33 points from Conference coaches. Mount Olive finished seventh at the 2018 Golf Championship.

Players to Watch:

Arthur Heinbach (Fr.)
Chandler Perry (Fr.)
Patrick Schweitz (Jr.)

9. Emmanuel College: The Lions make their preseason poll debut with 25 points and close out the in ninth-place.

Players to Watch:

Logan Reese (So.)
Erik Sundstrom (Sr.)

*denotes 2018 All-Conference Carolinas selection

2019 Men's Golf Preseason Poll

School (first-place votes)	Total
1. Limestone (8)	80
2. Southern Wesleyan (1)	66
3. North Greenville	61
4. Barton	57
5. King	54
6. Erskine	48
7. Belmont Abbey	44
8. Mount Olive	33
9. Emmanuel	25

Conference Carolinas is a NCAA Division II athletics conference made up of 11 teams from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. These institutions consist of: Barton College, Belmont Abbey, Converse College, Emmanuel College, Erskine College, King University, Lees-McRae College, Limestone College, University of Mount Olive, North Greenville University, and Southern Wesleyan University.