Men's Golf | 9/3/2026 11:00:00 AM
St. John Fisher university will look to earn its sixth straight Empire 8 title, as the 2026-27 season gets underway Sept. 5-7. The fall portion of the Empire 8 Championship will take place at Lake Shore Country Club in Cicero, NY on Sunday Oct. 11 - Monday Oct. 12. The Spring portion will take place on Sunday April 18 - Monday April 19. The Empire 8 Champion will receive an automatic berth into the 2027 NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship, which will be held May 18-21 at Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, VA.
2026-27 Empire 8 Men's Golf Players to Watch
SUNY Canton - Head Coach Mike Bickelhaupt
Kahontiio Lazore, Jr., Akwesasne, NY/Salmon River - Lazore, a two-time E8 Player to Watch, finished tied for ninth place overall at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships. His finish earned him second team All-Conference accolades.
Raine Rumble, So., Gouverneur, NY/Gouverneur - Rumble was the 2025-26 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. He finished third overall at the 2025-26 E8 Championships which earned him first team All-Conference.
Keuka College - Head Coach Ben Guiliano
Quinn Hansen, Sr., Oneonta, NY/Oneonta - Hansen competed in the fall portion of the 2025-26 Empire Championships. He shot a 169 overall over the two rounds.
Caleb Strade, So., Allegany, NY/Allegany-Limestone - Strade competed in the spring portion of the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships.
Nazareth University - Head Coach Jake Burgio
Lincoln Crosby, Sr., Chevy Chase, MD/DeMatha Catholic - Crosby, the 2024-25 Empire 8 Player of the Year and 2023-24 E8 Rookie of the Year, had another successful season with the Golden Flyers. He earned first team All-Conference accolades after his fourth place finish at the 2025-26 E8 Championships.
Jack Fesetch, So., Horseheads, NY/Horseheads - Fesetch impressed in his debut season for the Golden Flyers. He finished 14th overall at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships. His finish garnered him third team All-Conference.
SUNY Oswego - Head Coach Mike Howard
Tyce Helmick, Sr., Ontario, OR/Ontario - Helmick was the lowest scorer for the Lakers at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships. He finished sixth overall to second team All-Conference honors.
Sam Ligas, So., Binghamton, NY/Binghamton - Ligas impressed in his debut season. He finished tied for 11th place at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships and was a third team All-Conference selection.
Russell Sage College - Head Coach Kevin Cain
Ryan Arp, Sr., Greenville, NY/Greenville CAD - Arp, a two-time E8 Player to Watch, had a fantastic season with the Gators in 2025-26. He finished tied for 15th at the 2025-26 E8 Championships, which earned him third team All-Conference accolades.
St. John Fisher University - Head Coach Bob Simms
Colin Patterson, Jr., Massena, NY/Massena - Patterson, a two-time E8 Player to Watch, finished the 2025-26 season with the Cardinals second-best scoring average at 76.5 strokes per round. He was the 2025-26 Empire 8 Player of the Year and Individual Champion. He earned first team All-Conference honors. He went on to compete in the 2026 NCAA Championship Tournament.
Nick Years, Jr., Farmington, NY/Victor - Years, another two-time E8 Player to Watch, was the 2024-25 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. He held the Cardinals best scoring average last season at 76.4 strokes per round. He finished second overall at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships, earning first team All-Conference accolades. This was his second first team honor. He was a competitor at the 2026 NCAA Championship Tournament.
Utica University - Head Coach Jim Ironside
Aydin Parekh, Sr., Nobleton, Ontario/Blyth Academy - Parekh finished 22nd overall at the 2025-26 Empire Championships. Parekh was also named the 2025-26 Empire 8 Man of the Year for his excellence in the classroom and on both the course and the ice rink, as a standout defenseman with the nationally-ranked Utica University men's hockey team.
Koltin Pickell, So., Ellenville, NY/Ellenville - Pickell had a great rookie season for the Pioneers. He finished 17th overall at the 2025-26 Empire 8 Championships. His finish earned him third team All-Conference accolades.
Final 2025-26 Empire 8 Men's Golf Standings
St. John Fisher (1241, 308-295-319-319) - League Champions
Russell Sage (1260, 304-304-318-334)
Nazareth (1263, 306-307-327-323)
Utica (1272, 308-310-332-322)
Canton (1276, 301-314-334-327)
Oswego (1276, 317-311-317-331)
Keuka (1398, 339-335-365-359)
Poly (1401, 337-337-366-361)
2025-26 Empire 8 Men's Golf Top-10 Finishers
Colin Patterson - St. John Fisher - Individual Winner/Player of the Year
Nick Years - St. John Fisher
Raine Rumble - SUNY Canton
Lincoln Crosby Nazareth
Jack Doran - St. John Fisher
Tyce Helmick - SUNY Oswego
Nathan Macdonald - Utica
Luke Finlan - Russell Sage
Kahontiio Lazore - SUNY Canton
Jackson Vatter - Russell Sage
2026 Empire 8 Men's Golf Returning All-Americans, All-Region & Major Award Winners
- Lincoln Crosby, Nazareth, Sr., Chevy Chase, MD/DeMatha Catholic - 2024-25 Empire 8 Player of the Year, 2023-24 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year
- Colin Patterson, St. John Fisher, Jr., Massena, NY/Massena - 2025-26 Empire 8 Player of the Year
- Raine Rumble, Canton, So., Gouverneur, NY/Gouverneur - 2025-26 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year
- Nick Years, St. John Fisher, Jr., Farmington, NY/Victor - 2024-25 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year