Friday, April 26, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – A sensational season from start to finish, Concordia collected a pair of tournament titles, six top-three team finishes and has two of the top three leaders in stroke average throughout the GNAC. The good news continued for the Cavaliers this week as the team leads the way in selections to the 2018-19 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women’s Golf All-Conference Teams.

Led by Co-Player of the Year Cammie Decker, the Cavaliers collected three of the conference's superlative awards as voted upon by the conference coaches. Lindsay Aho was named the conference's Co-Coach of the Year, while freshman Kaley Saludares was named Freshman of the Year.

Decker shares Player of the Year with Western Washington junior Lacy Sheldon, who was the champion at the 2019 GNAC Women’s Golf Championships. Sheldon was also voted by coaches as the Newcomer of the Year.

Joining Decker as a first-team selection is teammate Shantel Antonio, receiving first-team honors for a second straight season. Rounding out the first team are Western Washington’s Sheldon and Brianna Esvelt and Simon Fraser's Belinda Lin, Jaya Rampuri and Kylie Jack.

Simon Fraser's Matthew Steinbach was named the Co-Coach of the Year after leading the Clan to the program’s third GNAC championship in four years.

Decker, who was also the 2018 GNAC Player of the Year, led a Concordia team that won a pair of tournaments and placed inside the top-three in six of them. She finished second in the conference with a 76.9 stroke average and placed in the top-10 in six events. Decker won the Saint Martin's Invitational on Oct. 6 and finished in the top-10 in her last two tournaments, topped by a fourth-place showing at the Sonoma State Spring Invitational.

Sheldon led the Vikings' selections to the all-conference team. Finishing on top of the GNAC with a 76.0 stroke average, Sheldon put together four top-10 finishes. That stretch was highlighted by an individual title at the GNAC Championships, where she carded a 1-over par round of 72 on the final day to secure medalist honors. 

Antonio also represented the Cavaliers well on the 2018-19 campaign, shining throughout her senior season in Portland. She finished third in the GNAC with a 77.4 stroke average and won three tournaments on the year, taking medalist honors at the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational, Sonoma State Fall Invitational and Sonoma State Spring Invitational. The senior led her team to a second-place showing at the GNAC Championships, using a first-round score of 74 en route to a fourth-place finish individually.

Joining Sheldon from WWU is Esvelt. The Kennewick, Washington product produced consistently all year long for her team, highlighted by a tie for 10th at the WWU Invitational on Oct. 9. Her 78.9 stroke average ranks sixth in the conference. 

Leading Simon Fraser's representatives is Rampuri, ranking fourth in the GNAC with a 77.5 stroke average to receive first-team honors for the second time in three seasons. A top-10 finisher in four tournaments this season, Rampuri's top performances to date came at the Saint Martin's Invitational and GNAC Championships. The junior finished in third place at each, finishing 11-over par in the Saint Martin's Invitational and 8-over at the GNAC Championships.

Lin is slotted just behind Rampuri with a stroke average of 77.6. She managed three top-10 finishes on the year, highlighted by a second-place showing at the GNAC Championships. The senior was monumental in her team's tournament title, firing a 2-under par final round of 69 to finish second among competing individuals. 

Rounding out the first-team selections is Jack, earning her second such honor in the last three years. Jack earned a quartet of top-10 finishes this year, including a fifth-place finish at the GNAC Championships. She finished with a 79.3 stroke average, ranking seventh in the conference.

Concordia led the way with three players earning Second Team All-GNAC honors, while Western Washington followed closely behind with a pair of its own. Montana State Billings, Simon Fraser and Northwest Nazarene rounded out the team with a single representative from each program.

Saludares earned Second Team All-GNAC honors along with the Freshman of the Year award. She stood out in her first collegiate season, finishing tied for 10th in the GNAC with an 80.1 stroke average. Her year was highlighted by bookend seventh-place showings at the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational in September and GNAC Championships in April.

Aho and Steinbach were named the co-GNAC Women's Golf Coaches of the Year. Aho's Cavaliers won a pair of tournament titles this season and enter regionals fresh off a second-place showing at the GNAC Championships.

Steinbach and Simon Fraser earned the conference's first-ever automatic bid into the NCAA Division II Championships with its title in Coeur d'Alene earlier this week. The first-place finish was his team's third top-two showing this season.

2018-19 GNAC WOMEN'S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Player of the Year: Cammie Decker, Concordia & Lacy Sheldon, Western Washington
Coaches of the Year: Lindsay Aho, Concordia & Matthew Steinbach, Simon Fraser
Freshman of the Year: Kaley Saludares, Concordia
Newcomer of the Year: Lacy Sheldon, Western Washington