BRADENTON, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern golf program reached another milestone this week, winning the Florida Blue Sunshine State Conference Championship on both the men’s and women’s side. The Sharks are the first team in the history of the SSC to accomplish this feat in back-to-back seasons.
Winning two SSC championships on the same day is very special, even more so given the way both teams won their respective championships,” said Director of Athletics
Michael Mominey. "This speaks volumes in terms of tradition and the culture that the two golf programs have built over the past nine years. Coach Amanda Brown and coach Garrett Runion, both in their first year of being a head coach, deserve much of the credit for keeping their teams focused and for the way they have handled the transition at the beginning of the year.”
Although the two teams won their respective championships in different ways, both teams have peaked just in time for a run at a national championship. Earlier in the season, the Sharks received the top ranking on both the men’s and women’s sides for the first time in school history. After each team lost their spot to a SSC opponent, the conference championship lifted both back to the pinnacle of the national rankings.
The Sharks left Bradenton, Fla. with a complete sweep of the trophies, winning not only both team titles but both individual championships as well. On the women’s side,
Liliana Cammisa (Fr., Alta Gracia, Argentina) became the second Shark to win the individual SSC Championship. Cammisa finished the tournament 12-over par with a three-round score of 228 (78-76-74), winning the title by three strokes.
“Lili’s been playing outstanding all year but has played in the shadow of Dani and Abbey,” said women’s golf head coach
Amanda Brown. “She’s one of the hardest working players on the team in terms of hours spent practicing and preparing. If anybody deserved a win, it’s her.”
For the men,
Benjamin Taylor (So., Leatherhead, England) won the individual title for the Sharks. He put together a phenomenal final round, starting the day in 11th overall at five-over par for the tournament, but quickly made his way to the top of the leaderboard. Taylor finished at even par (77-72-67--216). Before teeing off Tuesday, Taylor’s score did not count for his team because he was ranked fifth among the Sharks.
Outside of the internal battle for which Shark would win the individual title, there was little drama on the course for the men. The Sharks won the SSC Championship by a 37-stroke margin and led by 19 strokes heading into the final day. Of the five players listed on the All-Tournament team, NSU had four receive honors.
The opposite played out for the women, who overcame an 18-stroke deficit heading into the final day. At the start of the third round, the Sharks quickly moved themselves into second place and cut the deficit between them and Lynn. On the back-nine, the Sharks were neck-and-neck with Lynn in a battle that went down to the last putt. After play initially finished, the Sharks thought they had come up just short.
“We thought we lost by a couple of strokes when Lili putted in her final putt,” Brown. “I didn’t realize we won until we added up all the scores. A lot of credit goes to the girls, I’ve never seen a team fight back from 18 strokes down. Down by that deficit, most girls would just go through the motions on the last day.
“These girls played like champions, this is one of the proudest moments I’ve had as a coach.”
Both teams have bigger goals in their sites, as NSU attempts to become the first school since Florida Southern in 2000 to win the NCAA National Championships in men’s and women’s golf in the same year. In order for that goal to be achieved, the Sharks will need strong showings at the South Regional Tournament. The men’s team will compete at the Rock Barn Golf and Spa in Conover, N.C. from May 7-9. The women will head up to the panhandle and compete at the Stonebrook Golf Club in Pace, Fla. from May 6-8.
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