The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges Stags stood out among a competitive group ahead of their chase for a third straight conference title according to the 2024 SCIAC Men’s Golf Preseason Poll, as voted by the league's coaches.
This will be the first season that the three-round SCIAC Championship determines the conference winner, with SCIAC #1 and #2 rounds no longer counting toward final standings.
Entering the spring ranked No. 7 in the country following their second consecutive tied-third finish at last year’s NCAA Championship, two-time Coaching Staff of the Year winner Mitchell Fedorka’s squad must replace some standouts but appear well-equipped to do so. 2022 SCIAC Ken Sherman Newcomer of the Year and two-time First Team All-SCIAC pick Michael Ma headlines the returners along with Second Team selection Kevin Jiang. The Stags hit the ground running this fall as they carded a program-record 272 at the Bulldog Invitational.
No. 17 Pomona-Pitzer Colleges brings back a trio of All-Conference choices in Newcomer of the Year John Kim and fellow First Team honoree Yuki Bannai as well as Second Teamer Max Rockrohr. The Sagehens placed seventh at the NCAA Fall Preview with Kim tying for third individually and Rockrohr 21st among a field that included 10 nationally ranked teams.
Just two points behind the Sagehens, California Lutheran University also has earned a No. 25 national ranking after a successful fall season that saw the Kingsmen place 17th at the NCAA Fall Preview in Las Vegas and 15th at the Golfweek Fall October Classic in Sandestin, Fla. Jesse Clark Sportsmanship Award winner JP Guimaraes Jr. enrolled in graduate school to join First Team All-SCIAC choice Adam Cartozian for another season after tying for sixth at the SCIAC Championship as one of just four players to shoot below-par for all three rounds.
The University of Redlands ranked just three points behind CLU in the poll, though edged the Kingsmen by one place at the NCAA Fall Preview. Aaron Buck received First Team All-SCIAC recognition after tying for 10th place individually over the final three rounds. The electric rookie duo of Jason Bustos and Shreyas Kumaresh keeps a strong core intact for the University of La Verne after earning Second Team recognition. Last year’s Championship bronze medalist and another Second Team selection, Adam Elshamy, is Occidental College’s top returner. Chapman University rookie Conner Conley will look to build on his debut tied-24th finish.
A handful of teams have already seen some action to start the spring men’s golf season, with the first competition featuring all conference teams set for Saturday, Feb. 24 in SCIAC #1 at Costa Mesa Golf Course.
2024 SCIAC Men’s Golf Preseason Poll
1. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 42 points (4 first-place votes)
2. Pomona-Pitzer, 35 pts
3. California Lutheran, 33 pts (1)
4. Redlands, 30 pts
5. La Verne, 26 pts (1)
6. Occidental, 16 pts (1)
7. Chapman, 14 pts
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