Friday, April 22, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – Not only did Montana State Billings senior Riley Kaercher and Northwest Nazarene senior Tyler Joplin help lead their teams through the GNAC Championships, the two are leaders in the classroom as four-time selections to the 2022 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Men’s Golf All-Academic Team, presented by Barnes & Noble College.

The two players lead the 16 total selections to the team as the lone four-time selections. They are among 12 repeat selections to the squad, which also includes three three-time selections.

Kaercher, who has a 3.45 GPA as a business administration major, finished the regular season with a 75.7 stroke average for the Yellowjackets. He tied for 12th at the GNAC Championships to help lead Montana State Billings to a fourth-place team finish.

Joplin, who has a 3.75 GPA in Northwest Nazarene’s Master of Business Administration program, finished the regular season with a 75.9 stroke average in 22 rounds. He finished tied for 19th at the GNAC Championships.

Joplin was among five honorees on the All-Academic Team with a GPA of 3.6 or better.

The three-time selections to the team include Simon Fraser juniors Jordan Bean and Ryan Stolys and Western Washington senior Aidan Thain, who won the GNAC Championships with a conference all-time record 54-hole score of 199.

Northwest Nazarene led all institutions with five selections. Montana State Billings and Western Washington each had four.

To qualify for the GNAC All-Academic Teams, presented by Barnes & Noble College, nominees must be of sophomore eligibility or greater, have a minimum cumulative GPA or 3.20 or greater, be a letterwinner on their team and must be in their second year at the nominating institution.