At Gustavus, athletics and academics go hand-in-hand. For the men and women of the Gustavus Men’s and Women’s Golf teams, it is a championship activity to receive good grades. Beyond the tee, these Gusties ace their courses too.

The Men’s team was chosen by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) as the Academic National Champions for Division III. To receive this honor, the men had to have a cumulative grade point average, as a team, of 3.5. The Men’s team is one of only 11 teams in the NCAA to have GPAs of 3.5 or higher.

Junior A.J. Olson received the GCAA All-America Scholar award for having great game-play as well as excellent study habits.

The women were not far behind these achievements. “Our women finished second in Division III (3.69),” Head Coach Scott Moe said. “It was a great credit to the true student athlete.”

The women are also going the distance on the golf course. “Our Women’s team … finished first out of 23 teams,” Moe said.

At the Doug Georgianni Memorial UW-Eau Claire Invitational on Sept. 5, the Gustavus women not only finished first, but also had four individuals place in the top eight spots.

More recently on Sunday, Sept. 13, the women placed fourth out of nine teams at the St. Mary’s College (IN) Invite.

Leaders of the Women’s team include Senior Kali Griggs, who placed fourth in the Georgianni Memorial Invite and received an All-American award last year. Junior Katie Schenfeld and Sophomores Annie Jackson, Taylor Drenttel and Amanda Woodhull are also members to look for.

On the Men’s side, all of the letter-winners from last year are returning, and they have high hopes for the first-years joining the team. Their competition is tough, but Moe has great confidence in the knowledge and skills of the entire team.

In their first showing of the season, the men placed eighth out of fourteen teams at the Augsburg Invitational.

Senior Ricky Copeland returns as the player with the lowest average from last year.
Although both teams have performed well on the course and in the classroom, they need to keep it that way. “We need to stay consistent,” Moe said. “There is a lot of depth in the MIAC, and we have the potential to be very strong, but consistency is the key.”