BEREA, Ohio – After a runner-up finish a season ago, the Baldwin Wallace University men's golf team under the direction of defending Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Wayne Schneider have their sights on winning the Ohio Athletic Conference Championship in 2019-20.
Schneider welcomes back eight letterwinners, three golfers that competed in last year's league championship and two All-OAC players. The squad features two seniors, two juniors, four sophomores and one freshman.
BW will be led by senior All-OAC performer Jimmy Clark (North Olmsted) as he returns as the team leader in stroke average. Clark earned his first all-conference honor last season and a fired a career-best 75.11 average, which ranks fifth all-time in school history. Senior Ben Ladaika (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) enters his final campaign as the team's second-best average. Ladaika had a career season a year ago as he fired a career-best 77.16 average and a career-low round of 69 as well as earning his second career medalist honor and first OAC Golfer of the Week accolade. Sophomore Logan Bratsch (Olmsted Falls) is the final player to see action in last year's conference championship. In his inaugural season, Bratsch finished with a 79.42 average in a newcomer-high 15.5 rounds while firing a career-low round of 73.
The Yellow Jackets bring back five players that look to chip their way into the top-five lineup. Highlighting the group is junior All-OAC performer Drake Tobias (Macedonia/Nordonia). After missing all of last season, Tobias earned all-league honors and averaged 78.76 strokes in 18.5 rounds as a freshman.
Others making a strong push include junior Jared Budner (Macedonia/Nordonia) and sophomores Dylan Boff (Broadview Heights/North Royalton), Steven Newbould (Parma/Valley Forge) and Connor Thomas (Medina/Buckeye).
Budner averaged a career-best 83.52 in 12.5 rounds with a career-low round of 76. Boff had an 82.00 average in 9.5 rounds with a low-round of 75. Newbould posted an average of 83.64 in 14 rounds with a low-round of 73. Thomas tallied an average of 79.23 in 6.5 rounds with a low-round of 76.
Joining BW this season is freshman Ian Dorman (Medina).
As the collegiate golf season is split into a fall and a spring schedule, the Yellow Jackets open the campaign at the two-day Gatorade Collegiate Classic hosted by the College of Wooster on Saturday and Sunday, August 31 and September 1 at the Zoar Village Golf Course.
