The Elon University men’s golf team and head coach Don Hill are heading into the 2022 spring season with the goal of winning the program’s first conference championship since 1994. After a strong fall campaign, the Phoenix hope to continue its momentum of positive results into the spring season.
In October 2021, Elon won its home tournament, the Phoenix Invitational, by beating a field of 13 college teams. Elon University men’s golf closed out its fall campaign with a fifth place field at the Grandover Collegiate in Greensboro.
Among Elon’s top performers in the fall season were sophomore Garrett Risner, junior Bronson Myers, senior Will Frodigh, sophomore Pedro Rabadan Arbunies, graduate student Matt Ferrari, freshman Matt Doyle and freshman Juan Callejo Ropero. According to Hill, this mixture of underclassmen and upperclassmen has been crucial to the success of the team this past fall; and will contribute to the success of the Phoenix in their spring campaign.
Risner said the senior leadership of the team has been important for the team and especially the underclassmen as it prepares for its spring campaign.
“They have done a great job making us feel comfortable,” Risner said. “Showed us how to get better, what it is like to be a college teammate, and anything we ever needed we would ask them.”
Risner and Hill both stressed the importance of teamwork in achieving their season goal of winning Elon’s first-ever Colonial Athletic Association title. If the Phoenix wins, they will also get an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I men’s golf championship in May.
“We have the best team we probably have ever had here,” Risner said. “We have a great team chemistry and we have a lot of guys who can play. So we are working towards that as a team.”
Hill believes that the key to winning lies in consistent practice, which has been the focus in the time between the team’s fall and spring seasons.
“We want to win a conference championship,” Hill said. “That starts with each member of the team pushing each other to get better each day.”
Risner said team is intent on putting in the work in training and preparation to help guide success in future tournaments. He said he feels confident in his skill and expects to improve on his performance as a freshman.
“I am looking to get my first college win this semester,” Risner said. “I feel a lot more prepared and comfortable to do that now, having gained experience from the fall season.”
Elon’s next match will be the Donald Ross Collegiate Classic in Southern Pines, North Carolina, March 7-8. The CAA Championship will be from April 24 through April 26.