BEREA, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University men's golf team shot its lowest round of the 2015-2016 season on the final day of the 2016 Ohio Athletic Conference Championship Tournament and displayed a competitive spirit that should carry over to next season when the Yellow Jackets hope to return to the top of the OAC and back into the NCAA Division III National Tournament.

In its final round of the spring, BW carded a season-low 290 strokes to move up in the standings and place fifth. Expect that trend to continue and for a healthy competition between the returning student-athletes and the incoming student-athletes for the five spots in the starting lineup.

Second-year Head Coach Wayne Schneider may have nine of twelve current players returning, including seven freshmen of which two earned spots in the season-ending starting lineup.  But, according to Schneider, "the door is still wide open for improvement for each returning player, and we intend to recruit hard and bring in some talented newcomers who will offer competition for our veterans".

The starting five will return intact and includes current junior All-OAC players Scott Schroeder (Aurora) and Matt Kershner (Independence), junior Weston Lucas (Columbia Station/ Christian Community School) and freshman Nick Infanti (Clarksburg, Md./ Clarksburg) and Jason Garnet (North Royalton). Both Schroeder and Kershner are three-year starters who were part of BW's first-ever OAC Men's Golf Championship Team in 2014 while Lucas joined the squad the next fall as a transfer. He has started the past two years.

Schroeder led the team with a 75.7 stroke average in 20 rounds of 18 holes and led BW by placing in a tie for 14th at the OAC Tournament. Kershner was third on the team at 78.25 and placed 30th at the OAC tourney. Infanti, who did not play golf during the fall season when he was a candidate for the baseball pitching staff, finished second when he averaged 78.09 strokes in 11 spring season rounds. Lucas was fourth at 79.95 and had his lowest two rounds of the year at the OAC championship event. Garnet rounded out the quintet at 80.21 strokes, including shooting a team season and individual career-low of 68 on the final day of the OAC tourney.

In addition to the starters, freshman Logan Dwelle (Sandusky/ Perkins) was sixth at 80.23 strokes, freshman Hunter Miller (Frankfort/ Adena) was seventh at 84.0, senior on the roster, Connor Duplin (North Canton/ St. Thomas Aquinas) was eighth at 84.62, freshman Jack Kyle (Bay Village/ Bay) was ninth at 84.69, freshman Brad Blaine (Brooklyn) was tenth at 87.12, senior Aaron Harden (Mentor) was eleventh at 88.67 and freshman Adam Morris (Grafton/ Midview) was at 95.2 overall.

"We have a strong nucleus of both veterans and this years freshmen who will return next year," said Schneider, who helped the BW women's golf team reach the NCAA Div. III national tournament in 2013-2014 when he served as its interim coach during its 2010-2011 fall season. "If each young man dedicates himself toward improvement both during the summer and next season, each one has an opportunity to be better and to help the team improve and be in position to compete for an OAC title.

"We also continue to recruit young men into our men's golf program who are talented academically and athletrically and would be both a good fit at BW and offer a competitive spirit," continued Schneider.  "The future of the men's golf program at Baldwin Wallace University is very bright, and we are very excited about it."