USC Aiken Golf Ranked #1 in Nation; 5 PBC Teams in Top 25

USC Aiken Golf Ranked #1 in Nation; 5 PBC Teams in Top 25

The USC Aiken Pacers are the top-ranked golf team in the nation in the new Golf World/Nike Division II Coaches Poll released on Oct. 15. The Pacers received three first-place votes and 340 total points to take the top spot from West Florida, who slides to eighth. In all, five PBC golf team are nationally ranked with Columbus State at #5, GCSU at #6, Lander ranked 11th and Clayton State ranked 21st. With 20% of the ranked teams in the nation, the Peach Belt has more than any other conference.

The Pacers have had a phenomenal fall season with two wins in their five tournaments. USCA began the year with a win in the 15-team Kiawah Island Invitational and followed that with back-to-back top 10s at the Division I-laden Raines Development Intercollegiate and an impressive fifth-place at the 20-team Division II Preview in Blaine, Wash. But the #1 spot was awarded after the Pacers won the Aflac/Cougar Invitational which featured 12 nationally-ranked programs and every PBC team except one. USCA held off Florida Southern, now ranked #2 in the nation, by three strokes and host Columbus State by five.

Columbus State did not start playing their fall schedule until the end of September, but after finishing ahead of USCA in fourth place at the Division II Preview and third at their own Aflac/Cougar Invitational, the Cougars jumped from 11th to 5th in the new poll. Columbus State still has two tournaments left to play in the coming weeks.

GCSU actually has the lowest team stroke average in the PBC at 287.6 and is now ranked #6 in the nation. The Bobcats have finished no worse than sixth in any of the four tournaments they have played in with an impressive second-place at the Raines Development Group Intercollegiate, which had 16 Division I teams, and third-place finishes at Kiawah Island and the State Farm Laker Collegiate.

Lander went from unranked to #11 in the nation thanks to their fourth-place finish at the Aflac/Cougar and their first tournament victory of the year at the Queens Invitational. The Bearcats began the season finishing second at the Coker Intercolleigate and also came in fifth at the State Farm Laker.

Clayton State actually dropped from 12th to 21st after finishing 10th at the Aflac/Cougar, but will move up again thanks to their second-place finish at the Queens Invitational, which was held after the voting had completed on the current poll. Clayton State earned their high rankings early with a third-place at the Orchard Fall Invitational and another third at their own State Farm Laker Collegiate.

Florida Southern and Sonoma State are tied for second in the GCAA poll. UNC Pembroke and Armstrong Atlantic State also received votes in the poll, but were not among the top 25.

You can see the complete GCAA Poll here.