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Somerset, NJ - It’s been quite a month for Wagner’s Anton Frodelius.

It began with the senior golfer becoming the first-ever Seahawk to claim the NEC men’s individual crown in the 33 years of the league’s championship tournament.

Next, he traveled to College Grove, TN for NCAA Regional play, a trip that was highlighted by an even-par 72 during the second of his three rounds.

One day after completing his NCAA appearance, the Swedish-born Frondelius became Wagner’s first-ever NEC Men’s Golfer of the Year.

Frondelius headlined a list of first-time major award winners. Robert Morris’ Max Palmer became the first Colonial to capture the NEC Rookie of the Year honor. Meanwhile, on the heels of the Bulldogs’ team title, Bryant’s Charlie Blanchard secured his first NEC Coach of the Year accolade.

Bryant placed a league-high three players on the All-NEC Teams, which were unveiled alongside the major honorees via the @NECsports Twitter handle.  Wagner and Robert Morris also celebrated multiple all-NEC selections.

Frondelius, who was a key piece to Wagner’s first-ever NEC team title in 2016, enjoys his third consecutive all-conference selection following back-to-back appearances on the Second Team.  Capped by his first-place showing at the NEC Championship, Frondelius accounted for the conference’s lowest individual scoring average during the 2016-17 regular season. The senior Seahawk averaged 72.4 strokes per round en-route to top-three finishes at more than half of the events on the team’s schedule. Frondelius ranked amongst the top-nine individual scorers at all but two tournaments this season and bagged three victories, including a win via a three-hole playoff at the Lafayette Lehigh Valley Invitational. Only one of Frondelius’ last 10 rounds of golf resulted in a score higher than 74. He ended the conference tournament by shooting a two-under 70 on Sunday to defeat Bryant’s Ryan Tombs for the title.

Palmer accounted for the lowest individual scoring average amongst NEC rookies this year. The Michigan product averaged 74.7 strokes per round, which stands as the sixth-best single-season mark in the program’s history.  He accounted for a trio of top-four finishes as a freshman, including a runner-up showing at the RMU Colonial Classic in April. At the conference championship tournament, Palmer played his way into a tie for 13th place on the overall individual leader board. His second-round 74 was the lowest single-day score amongst all freshmen at the event. He teed off his collegiate career with a fourth-place showing at the Bucknell Fall Invitational, carding a two-round 141 score highlighted by a three-under 69 on Day 2. He shot a 72 or better in each of his first four rounds of the fall season.

Blanchard presided over Bryant’s second-ever NEC men’s team title as his deeply-talented lineup scored remarkably well at the annual conference championship tournament in Daytona Beach, FL. All five starters played their way onto the Top 20 individual leader board at LPGA International’s Hills Course. Three Bulldogs were amongst the top-six finishers at the three-round championship event led by senior Ryan Tombs in second place. Bryant’s three-day 884 score was 26 strokes better than the total compiled by runner-up Fairleigh Dickinson. The Bulldogs, who ended the first round with a nine-stroke lead, were in the driver’s seat the entire weekend. Bryant contested four events during the month of April and posted top-three team finishes at all four. Blanchard’s squad also won its first tournament of the academic year, finishing first at the Ryan Lee Memorial in September.  


MORE TO KNOW...
- Bryant seniors Ryan Tombs and McKinley Slade are on the All-NEC First Team for the second year in a row. Tombs averaged 72.8 strokes per round, the second-lowest overall average in the NEC, and was the runner-up at the 2017 league championship tournament. Slade, the 2016 NEC Golfer of the Year, placed fourth on the NEC Tournament leader board this spring and his first-day 69 was the lowest single-round score recorded during the three-day event.

- Senior John Roberts, who finished sixth overall at the NEC Championship, earned a second team honor to make Bryant the lone program to garner three all-league selections this season.
Wagner’s Lucas Moreno garnered an all-NEC second team selection for the second straight season. Coming off the 2016 NEC Rookie of the Year award, Moreno posted a 74.7 strokes per round average as a sophomore.

- Fairleigh Dickinson’s U Minn Woon returned to the All-NEC First for the second time. The 2016 NEC individual champion finished in a tie for seventh place at the 2017 conference tournament and led the Knights with a 73.9 strokes per round average.

- Saint Francis U junior Brandon Mihalo posted the league’s third-lowest scoring average (73.8) en-route to all-NEC first team honors.

- Second Teamer Daniel Franco Saad was Robert Morris’ highest finisher at the NEC Championships for the second consecutive season. He took fifth place after carding a six-over 222 three-round score.

- Sacred Heart’s team leader in scoring average earned a place on the All-NEC Second Team. Junior Matt Shubley paced the Pioneers with an average round score of 75.6 through nine tournaments this season.