Ithaca College head coach Molly Braid has been voted the Empire 8 Women's Golf Coach of the Year by the coaches in the league. This marks her second coaching honor in as many years.
Ithaca placed first at the 2016 Empire 8 Championship held Oct 1-2, winning its seventh-consecutive conference title. The Bombers had a two-day total of 660, finishing 55 strokes ahead of Elmira College.
Braid guided senior Kimberley Wong to individual E8 medalist honors and Peyton Greco to E8 Rookie of the Year honors, marking the third time the same school has won both awards.
She also coached four first team and two second team All-Empire 8 selections.
Ithaca participated in three tournaments during the month of September and had three top-three finishes. The Bombers started the season at the St. Lawrence Invitational and placed third as a team. Ithaca then won its first title of the 2016 fall campaign at the William Smith Invitational and completed the month of September with a second place finish at the Martin-Wallace Invite.
In addition to Braid's honor, one member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2016 Women’s Golf Sportswoman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
All-Sportswoman Team
Elmira – Giovanna DeLoca
Ithaca – Mary Rooker
Nazareth – Lacey Rezucha
St. John Fisher – Megan Bleck
Utica – Kara O’Driscoll
At the conclusion of the E8 Championship the top finishers in the four-day tournament were named to the first and second all-conference teams.
2016 First Team All-Empire 8
| Player |
School |
| Kimberley Wong |
Ithaca College |
| Indiana Jones |
Ithaca College |
| Audrey Clarke |
Elmira College |
| Peyton Greco |
Ithaca College |
| Lauren Saylor |
Ithaca College |
Second Team All-Empire 8
| Player |
School |
| Kyra Denish |
Ithaca College |
| Mary Rooker |
Ithaca College |
| Alyssa Ogden |
Elmira College |
| Giovanna DeLoca |
Elmira College |
| Victoria Maddalone |
St. John Fisher |
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