SMCC Men's Golf Named GCAA Academic National Champions, 3 Earn GCAA All-America Scholar Honors

PHOENIX ---

Sophomores Zachary Erskine, Ethan Klose and Damon Vilkauskas of the South Mountain Community College men's golf team earned 2022-23 Golf Coaches Association of America All-America Scholar honors after outstanding work in the classroom and on the course. To qualify, the three had to receive their Associate's Degree, were in their last year of athletic eligibility in the NJCAA, participate in 50% of their team's competitive rounds, have a stroke average under 77.0, and maintain a minimum cumulative career grade-point average of 3.2. 

Update: The SMCC men's golf team earned 2022-23 GCAA NJCAA Division II Academic National Champion honors. The Cougars led all NJCAA Division II programs with a 3.55 team GPA. 

Erskine (Utah Valley University), Klose (New Mexico State University) and Vilkauskas (University of Wyoming) are all off to NCAA Division I programs in the 2023 fall. All three were NJCAA All-Americans during their Cougar careers, with Erskine and Klose helping SMCC win the 2022 NJCAA Division II National Championship and Vilkauskas finishing as the individual runner-up at the 2023 NJCAA Division II National Championships.

After playing in eight spring tournaments, Vilkauskas received 2023 NJCAA Division II and PING First Team All-American honors. He finished second at the NJCAA Division II National Championships at -5 (283) and won three spring events. Vilkauskas won the Region I Division II Championships at -10 (274), the Estrella Mountain Invite at -9 (133), and the Paradise Valley Invite at -7 (137).

Klose earned 2023 NJCAA Division II PING First Team All-American & All-West Region honors after competing in eight spring tournaments during the 2023 spring campaign. He won the Mesa Thunderbird Invitational at -5 (139) and took second at the Eastern Arizona Invite at -4 (140). Klose also placed fourth at the CGCC Invitational at -7 (135) and tied for fourth at the Paradise Valley Invite at -3 (141). 

After playing in eight spring tournaments, Erskine earned 2023 NJCAA Division II Second Team All-American and PING Second Team All-American honors. He tied for 16th at the NJCAA Division II National Championships at +8 (296) and seventh at the Region I Division II Championships at +5 (289). He tied for first at the CGCC Invitational at -8 (134), placed second at the Estrella Mountain Invite at -5 (137), and tied for second at the Mesa Thunderbird Invitational at -1 (143).