Five Cougars Collect NJCAA Division II All-America Honors
PHOENIX ---
Five South Mountain Community College men's golf team student-athletes earned 2021 NJCAA Division II All-America honors, led by a First Team award for freshman Cecile Belisle. Ryan Macpherson (Second Team), Nick Hedman (Second Team), Damon Vilkauskas (Honorable Mention) and Jando Hernandez (Honorable Mention) all received the honors after outstanding performances at the 2021 NJCAA Divison II National Championships.
Belisle, a freshman from Red Wing, Minn., finished at six-under, 282 to win Individual Medalist honors at the NJCAA Division II National Championships May 18-21 at Swan Lake Resort in Indiana. After the first two rounds, he was nine-under-par and finished at even-par 72 in the final round to win the event.
Belisle received First Team ACCAC Division II and NJCAA Region I honors earlier this spring after winning twice. He claimed individual medalist honors with a four-under, 276 over the four rounds at the NJCAA Region I Division II tournament, including a five-under performance over rounds two and three. He also won the Scottsdale CC Invitational Mar. 1-2 at Hillcrest Golf Club. Belisle opened the tournament with a four-under, 68 to take a one-stroke lead over two teammates.
Hedman and Macpherson tied for 15th in Indiana, finishing at 10-over for the event. Hedman opened with an even-par 72 and was at one-under through two rounds, while Macpherson's best two rounds were a 73 in round two and a 72 in round four.
Macpherson won the season-opening Mesa CC Invitational and the South Mountain Classic. Hedman also won twice during the spring, claiming individual medalist honors at the Pima CC Invitational and the Paradise Valley Invitational.
Vilkauskas tied for 22nd at 12-over, posting three rounds of 74 at the National Championships. He finished under par at four tournaments and had five top-10 finishes.
Hernandez tied for 26th at 13-over in Indiana, carding two rounds of 74 to open the event. He posted a season-best, two-round score of 144 twice and finished at even-par at the Mesa Thunderbird Invitational and Scottsdale CC Invitational.
Hedman, Macpherson and Vilkauskas earned NJCAA Region I Division II honors. At the same time, Hedman and Vilkauskas received First Team All-ACCAC awards, and Macpherson received a spot on the conference's Second Team.
As a team, the Cougars opened with two strong rounds to put them in the lead at the NJCAA Division II Championships. However, a tough third day dropped them to second, and they were unable to catch National Champion Parkland CC (Fla.), who beat SMCC by two strokes. Before that, SMCC won all seven of their 2021 spring tournaments and produced the individual medalist at all seven events.