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APSU Women’s Golf picked Sixth, Men’s Golf picked Ninth in OVC Preseason Poll

APSU Sports Information

Austin Peay State University Sports - APSU - Governors - Lady GovsBrentwood, TN – Austin Peay State University women’s golf was picked to finish sixth in the Ohio Valley Conference preseason poll, with their counterparts on the men’s side slated ninth in a vote of league coaches.

That was announced by the OVC ahead of the start of regular season competition, with the APSU men’s team set to get underway this weekend at the Invitational at Savannah Harbor, hosted by William and Mary in Savannah, GA.

While replacing Jessica Cathey hasn’t been easy for Sara Robson‘s squad, the women’s golf team saw Taylor Goodley and Ashton Goodley develop into a dynamic one-two punch at the top of the Austin Peay lineup, with Taylor earning OVC Golfer of the Week after leading the Govs to runner-up honors at the F&M Bank APSU Intercollegiate, October 11th.

Austin Peay Women's Golf selected sixth in OVC Preseason Poll, Men's Golf picked ninth. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Women’s Golf selected sixth in OVC Preseason Poll, Men’s Golf picked ninth. (APSU Sports Information)

Senior Morgan Kauffman earned her own share of the OVC Golfer of the Week honor to cap the fall with a seventh-place finish at the Winthrop Intercollegiate.

It ended a stellar fall for the Govs, who broke the school 54-hole record in three straight tournaments, with the mark currently standing at 910 since September’s Cardinal Classic.

In addition to the Goodley’s and Kauffman, Robson’s side returns a bevy of players to this spring’s lineup, with Amber Bosworth, AnnaMichelle Moore and Meghann Stamps coming off solid falls and the hoped-for returns of Morgan Gardner and Sarah Beth Struble from injury.

The women’s vote was between two teams as Murray State (5 first-places vote) and two-time defending champion Eastern Kentucky (4 first-place votes) received all the top votes and were separated by just one total point with the Racers picking up 61 points followed by the Colonels with 60 points.

Morehead State was tabbed third (47 points) and followed closely by Jacksonville State (44).  One of those four teams has won the OVC Championship over the past 15 years. The poll was rounded out by Tennessee Tech (41), Austin Peay (31), Belmont (24), Eastern Illinois (15) and Tennessee State (8).

A young team returns for head coach Robbie Wilson on the men’s side, with Erik Hedberg and Hunter Tidwell representing the entirety of the upper class for the Govs. Hedberg, a senior from Barcelona, was APSU’s leader in two tournaments during the fall, including a tie for fourth at the Skyhawk Classic.

With so much youth, opportunities will be plentiful for the Governors newcomers to gain experience. Sophomore Sean Butscher, who opened the F&M Bank APSU Intercollegiate with a 69, carried his good work into the winter, posting a 15th-place finish at the New Year’s Invitational in Florida. Sophomore Sam Lopez and a trio of talented freshmen—Michael Busse, Austin Lancaster and Alex Vegh—will be in the mix for weekend spots as well.

On the men’s side Eastern Kentucky received 10 of the 11 first-place votes to finish with a league-high 100 points. Jacksonville State was picked second (88 points) followed closely by defending champion UT Martin (80) who received the other first-place vote. Murray State (62), SIUE (61) and Belmont (59) were separated by just three votes in being tabbed third, fourth and fifth respectively.

The teams were rounded out by Morehead State (50), Tennessee Tech (43), Austin Peay (32), Tennessee State (16) and Eastern Illinois (14).

Austin Peay’s men open up this weekend at the aforementioned Invitational at Savannah Harbor, while the APSU women begin play March 10-11 with a dual against Belmont in Gulf Shores, AL.

The OVC Women’s Golf Championship will be contested April 17th-19th at Hampton Cove on the Robert Trent Jones Trail in Owens Cross Roads, Alabama (just outside Huntsville). The OVC Men’s Championships runs April 24th-26th at The Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at The Shoals in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.

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