CLEVELAND, OH – The 2024 NCAC Men's and Women's Golf Championships will tee off next weekend, May 3-5, on the North Course of the Westfield Country Club in Westfield Center, Ohio. Hiram College will serve as the host institution for the 54-hole tournament, with 18 holes being played on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, respectively.
 
Three-time defending NCAC women's champion Denison collected all five first-place votes for 25 total points to top the pre-championship poll following balloting of the league coaches. Five-time NCAC champion DePauw claimed second with a total of 19 points, while Wittenberg, a three-time NCAC champion, tallied 14 points for third place. Wooster (12) and Ohio Wesleyan (5) round out this year's five-team field. Hiram was forced to prematurely complete its season due to injuries.
 
The Big Red enter the 2024 NCAC Women's Golf Championship ranked No. 29 in the Clippd rankings and are receiving votes in the latest Mizuno Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA). Denison has compiled three top-five team finishes this season, including winning the Win Palmer Cup (April 15-16) this spring. The Big Red have three All-NCAC honorees returning from a season ago, including senior Katie Griffin (Colorado Springs, CO/The Colorado Springs School) and juniors Ella McRoberts (Venetia, PA/Peters Township) and Lindsey Byer (St. Louis, MO/Ladue Horton Watkins). Griffin captured a runner-up finish at the 2023 NCAC Championship for first-team honors, while  McRoberts, the 2022 NCAC Newcomer of the Year, finished fourth at the conference championship a season ago. Byer collected All-NCAC third-team honors in 2023 after finishing tied for 11th last year. Additionally, Isabella Dolan (St. Petersburg, FL/Shorecrest Preparatroy School), the 2023 Newcomer of the Year, will look to contend as she takes the championship course for the first time.
 
The Wittenberg men, who enter the 2024 Championship as the defending champion and the winners of 12 titles, received six first-place votes and totaled 61 points to top the pre-championship poll voted on by the league coaches. Kenyon, who won its first conference title in 2022, took second in the voting, collecting the remaining two first-place votes and 57 points overall. Wabash was tabbed third with 46 points, while DePauw received 40 points for fourth and Denison earned 36 points for fifth. Wooster (21), Ohio Wesleyan (16) and Hiram (9) round out the eight-team field.
 
The Wittenberg Tigers head into the 2024 NCAC Men's Golf Championship ranked 14th in the Clippd rankings and 15th in the latest Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) Bushnell/Golfweek DIII Coaches Poll, while Kenyon is ranked among the Clippd rankings (22nd) and GCAA polling (21st). The Tigers head into the NCAC championship with five tournament victories on the season, including the Ted Barclay Invitational (Sept. 2-3), the Wittenberg Classic (Oct. 15-16), the Hershey Cup (April 7-8), the Win Palmer Cup (April 15-16), and the DePauw Spring Clash (April 21). Wittenberg seniors J.F. Aber (Pittsburgh, PA/Sewickley Academy) and Nick Pidgeon (Homeworth, OH/West Branch) look to contend again after finishing in the top-five of last year's conference championship event. Aber and Pidgeon earned All-NCAC first-team accolades after placing third and tying for fifth, respectively.

Friday's action starts at 1:30 p.m. with the women teeing off on hole one and the men teeing off on hole 10. Tee times for Saturday begin at 12:10 p.m. with the men on the 10th hole and the women on the first hole starting at 12:20 p.m., while tee times for Sunday are both slated for 12:10 p.m. with the men on one and the women on 10. Westfield Country Club's North Course is a par-70 layout. The men will be using tee one for holes 1-16 and 18 and tee two for hole 17 on the North Course scorecard. The women will be using tee three on the North Course scorecard for holes 1-13, 15 and 18 and tee four for holes 14, 16 and 17. NCAC tee markers will be used and they are blue for the men and red for the women.

 

2024 North Coast Athletic Conference Men's & Women's Golf Coaches Poll (first-place votes in parentheses, followed by total points)
WOMEN				MEN
Rank	School	Points		Rank	School	Points
1.	Denison (5)	25		1.	Wittenberg (6)	61
2.	DePauw	19		2.	Kenyon (2)	57
3.	Wittenberg	14		3.	Wabash	46
4.	Wooster	12		4.	DePauw	40
5.	Ohio Wesleyan	5		5.	Denison	36
				6.	Wooster	21
				7.	Ohio Wesleyan	16
				8.	Hiram	9