By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Toledo, Ohio---Three student-athletes from the Owens Community College men's golf team, along with head coach Josh Williams, recently earned postseason awards from the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
Williams, a fourth-year head coach, was named the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II East Region Coach of the Year by the GCAA in conjunction with Golf Pride Grips after leading the team to one of the best seasons in program history.
This past season, Williams led the Owens golf team to its fourth straight top 10 finish at the NJCAA Division II National Tournament, and the team tied the program record for highest finish in the tournament with fifth place. Along the way, Williams led the team to Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) and Region XII championships, which helped him earn OCCAC and Region XII Coach of the Year recognition for the third time in his career.
In his four years, Williams has helped Owens win three OCCAC championships, four Sub-Region XII championships, three Region XII championships and 52 total tournament championships.
In addition to the award for Williams, freshman Bandit Chaisuk (Phathumpthapwittayakarn/Nong Khai, Thailand) and sophomores Dominic DiGiacomo (Ocean City/Ocean City, N.J) and Will Mullins (St. Bernadette's/Bristol, United Kingdom) were all named to the NJCAA Division II PING All-East Region team.
Mullins, who won the OCCAC Golfer of the Year award and was named First Team All-Region XII, finished first among all golfers in conference play. Chaisuk finished sixth in conference play and earned Second Team All-OCCAC recognition.
DiGiacomo, meanwhile, captured First Team All-OCCAC, First Team All-Region XII, Region XII Player of the Year, NJCAA Division II All-Tournament Team and NJCAA Division II Second Team All-American recognition this past season. At the national tournament, he finished 15th in the nation, which is the highest individual finish in program history.
Notes
The 2015-16 Owens men's golf season marked the final one in program history, at least for a while, after the college announced the suspension of the program - along with men's soccer, women's soccer, baseball and softball - beginning with the 2016-17 school year due to fiscal reasons.