Big Ten Release | Season Stats
ROSEMONT - Fighting Illini men's golf was recognized by the Big Ten Conference on Tuesday as the league announced its postseason awards. Head Coach Mike Small was honored as Big Ten Men's Golf Coach of the Year for the fifth-straight season, while four Illini were selected as All-Big Ten honorees. Junior Michael Feagles was named to the All-Big Ten First Team, while juniors Bryan Baumgarten and Giovanni Tadiotto join freshman Adrien Dumont de Chassart garnered second team honors.
Earning the 11th Big Ten Coach of the Year honor in his career, Small has led the Orange and Blue to 10 conference championship titles in the past 11 seasons, and he has coached seven players to nine consecutive individual Big Ten titles. During his tenure, he has coached nine individuals to Big Ten Player of the Year honors and seen seven freshman earn the league's Freshman of the Year laurel.
A unanimous selection to the All-Big Ten First Team, Feagles is coming off of a top-20 finish at the 2019 Big Ten Men's Golf Championships. He has finished among the top 30 in each of Illinois' tournaments this season, placing among the top 10 in five events. Feagles leads the Orange and Blue with his 71.0 stroke average this year, and he carded a career-low 202 (-11) at the Fighting Irish Classic this fall. The conference recognition marks the third all-conference honor in Feagles' career as he was named the league's Freshman of the Year in 2017 and also earned First Team recognition last season.
Coming off of co-individual medalist honors at the 2019 Big Ten Championships, Dumont de Chassart earns his first-career conference honor. The Villers la Ville, Belgium, native, has earned two individual titles this season as he also won the Tar Heel Intercollegiate. He leads Illinois with his 70.80 spring stroke average, and has placed among the top 10 individuals in five tournaments this year.
Baumgarten joins Dumont de Chassart as an All-Big Ten Second Team honoree. He has tallied five top-15 finishes this season, and sits among Illini scoring leaders for his 71.81 stroke average this season. Baumgarten earns the second all-conference honor of his career as he also took home second-team honors in 2018.
The Second Team All-Conference nod marks the first for Tadiotto in his career. He is coming off of a seventh-place finish at the Big Ten Championships, which marked his sixth finish among the top 15 individuals this season.
Freshman Luke Armbrust received the league's Sportsmanship Award, also marking his first-career conference honor. The students chosen for the Sportsmanship Award are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. These students must also be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Illinois is coming off of its fifth consecutive Big Ten Championship title at the Philadelphia Cricket Club last weekend, marking the program's 10th title in the last 11 years. Four Illini closed the tournament among the top 20 individually, led by Dumont de Chassart who became Illinois' ninth consecutive Big Ten Individual Medalist as he shared the top spot on the leaderboard with Minnesota's Angus Flanagan. Illinois has finished among the top five teams in eight tournaments this season, taking home four team titles and earning two runner-up finishes. The Orange and Blue won consecutive fall tournaments at the MacDonald Cup and the Fighting Irish Classic, and closed regular season play with a 37-under par runner-up performance at the Hawkeye Invitational.
Next up, Illinois will await its NCAA regional fate. The 2019 Division I Men's Golf Championship selections are set to be announced May 1 at 8 p.m. CT. The selections announcement will air live on the Golf Channel's Golf Central and be streamed live on the Golf Channel website. Eighty-one teams and 45 individuals will be selected to compete at one of six regional championship sites, including Palouse Ridge Golf Club in Pullman, Washington, hosted by Washington State University; Stanford Golf Course in Stanford, California, hosted by Stanford University; TPC Myrtle Beach in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, hosted by Coastal Carolina University and Myrtle Beach Regional Sports Alliance; University of Louisville Golf Club in Simpsonville, Kentucky, hosted by the University of Louisville; University of Georgia Golf Course in Athens, Georgia, hosted by the University of Georgia; and University of Texas Golf Club in Austin, Texas, hosted by the University of Texas.
Six 54-hole regional tournaments will be conducted May 13-15. Thirteen teams and ten individuals not on those teams will compete at each of three regionals while the other three regionals will have 14 teams and five individuals not on those teams. The low five teams and the low individual not on those teams from each regional will advance to the finals. NCAA team and individual medalist titles will be decided May 24-29 at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
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2019 BIG TEN ALL-CONFERENCE AND INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Big Ten Player of the Year: Alex Schaake, Iowa
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: David Nyfjall, Northwestern
Big Ten Coach of the Year: Mike Small, Illinois
ALL-BIG TEN TEAMS
First Team
MICHAEL FEAGLES, ILLINOIS
ALEX SCHAAKE, IOWA
JAMES PIOT, MICHIGAN STATE
Donnie Trosper, Michigan State
David Nyfjall, Northwestern
Daniel Wetterich, Ohio State
Timmy Hildebrand, Purdue
Jordan Hahn, Wisconsin
Unanimous selections in ALL CAPS
Second Team
Bryan Baumgarten, Illinois
Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Illinois
Giovanni Tadiotto, Illinois
Benton Weinberg, Iowa
Peter Knade, Maryland
Angus Flanagan, Minnesota
Will Grimmer, Ohio State
Chris Gotterup, Rutgers
Sportsmanship Award Honorees
Luke Armbrust, Illinois
Jake Brown, Indiana
Aaron DeNucci, Iowa
Tim Colanta, Maryland
Henry Spring, Michigan
Andrew Walker, Michigan State
Campbell Fisher, Minnesota
Dylan McCabe, Nebraska
Ryan Lumsden, Northwestern
Caleb Ramirez, Ohio State
Alec Bard, Penn State
Jarle Volden, Purdue
Matt Mourin, Rutgers
Brett Robinson, Wisconsin
