Tuesday, May 2, 2017

PORTLAND, Ore. – Three golfers from Simon Fraser were named to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women’s Golf All-Conference Team, led by sophomore Player of the Year Emily Leung, who helped the Clan earn its first-ever NCAA playoff berth after an emotional season.

The late John Buchanan was named the GNAC Coach of the Year by his peers after a legendary coaching career at Simon Fraser. Buchanan, who began the Simon Fraser women’s golf program, coached the team though the fall before a battle with cancer took his life in January. The foundation Buchanan set helped interim head coach Matthew Steinbach take the program to new heights in 2017.

Leung is a repeat first-team selection as a sophomore after winning the GNAC Championships at Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course. She shot a 5-over-par 147 over two rounds to win the tournament by six strokes and become the conference leader in strokes per round with 77.1. The conference crown was her second collegiate title.

A pair of First Team All-GNAC selections were named GNAC co-Freshman of the Year as Concordia’s Cammie Decker and Simon Fraser’s Jaya Rampuri shared the honor. Rampuri ranked fifth in the conference in strokes per round with 78.4 followed immediately by Decker with 78.9. Rampuri had one of her three top-10 finishes at the Sonoma State Spring Invitational, where she finished in a tie for eighth place. Decker posted her best result at the Concordia Invitational, taking fourth place behind a trio of golfers from Division I Portland State.

Concordia’s Shantel Antonio was selected as the GNAC Newcomer of the Year and was also picked as Second Team All-GNAC. The sophomore was a two-time GNAC Golfer of the Week selection, taking 13th place at the CBU Invitational followed by a 17th-place finish at the Otter Invitational. At the GNAC Championships, she put together her first top-10 performance of the season, finishing in a tie for eighth place at 17-over-par 159.

Leung and Rampuri were joined on the first team by teammate Kylie Jack, who took second place at the GNAC Championships this year. It was her second top-five finish, which is tied for the most this season for Simon Fraser. The senior brought her strokes per round average down to 80.3 in the process.

Western Washington’s Jenn Paul received her third consecutive first-team selection in as many years of collegiate golf. She was the GNAC’s leader in strokes per round throughout the regular season and finished in a tie for third at the GNAC Championships with a score of 12-over-par 154. Paul has qualified individually for the West Super Regional and takes an average of 77.5 strokes per round into the tournament.

Senior Samantha Miller received all-conference recognition for the fourth year in a row. Northwest Nazarene’s statistical leader repeated as a first-team selection after doing the same in her freshman and sophomore seasons followed by a second-team honor last season. Miller averaged 78.3 strokes per round and won a GNAC-best two titles. She finished in a tie for eighth place at the GNAC Championships with a score of 17-over-par 159 the final collegiate event of her decorated career.

Montana State Billings finished in third place at the GNAC Championships and had a conference-best four all-GNAC selections with Bailee Dexter, Shealyn Hafer, Kortney McNeil and Sammy Walter all being named to the Second Team All-GNAC. All four golfers finished inside the top 20 at the conference tournament led by McNeil’s third-place finish. Western Washington’s Stephanie Sewell claimed her second all-conference honor in her sophomore season, being named to the second team after receiving first-team recognition in her freshman year.

2016-17 GNAC WOMEN'S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM