Oglethorpe Men's Golf Begins Season on Top

From Oglethorpe University:

The Oglethorpe men's golf team will begin the 2016-17 season where they left off at the end of the 2015-16 season: in the top five of the Bushnell Golfweek Division III Coaches Poll. The Stormy Petrels earned the No. 4 spot in the preseason poll released by the Golf Coaches Association of America Friday afternoon. They received one of the 19 available first-place votes, as well.

The Petrels came in behind Claremont-M-S, Methodist and Huntingdon, respectively. Claremont-M-S, the defending national champions, took the top spot and 14 of the 19 first-place votes. No. 2 Methodist, who finished tied for fifth at the 2016 NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship in Rochester, New York, garnered a first-place nod, while third-ranked Huntingdon, who finished second, garnered a pair. The Petrels finished eighth in last season's NCAA Championship and third in the final coaches poll of the season. Wittenberg, who finished tied for third at the NCAA Championship, rounded out the preseason top five. No. 22 Concordia (Texas) received the remaining first-place vote.

The Petrels served as one of three SAA squads to earn a spot in the top 25, with all of them slotting into the top 10. Rhodes earned the No. 7 spot after finishing ninth at the NCAA Championship and Berry came in at No. 10 after qualifying for nationals. Centre will begin the season outside of the top 25, but was among those also receiving votes.

Oglethorpe also serves as one of four teams from Georgia to crack the rankings, with Emory coming in at No. 12 and LaGrange at No. 14, joining the Petrels and Berry. LaGrange finished 14th in the national tournament and Emory qualified for the event. Fellow state school Piedmont was among those also receiving votes.

The Petrels will begin their fall season by hosting the NCAA Division III Fall Preview at Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida, Sept. 18 through 20. The Petrels will also host the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship at the same site in May.

Image via Oglethorpe University