STATS/NOTES | ABOUT CHATTANOOGA GOLF  
 
SPARTANBURG, S.C.---The Chattanooga Mocs men's golf team tied a program record with four on the All-Southern Conference squad the league announced Tuesday morning. The quartet includes juniors Paul Conroy, Samuel Espinosa and John Houk along with sophomore Garrett Engle.
 
This is just the second time in school history that four Mocs earned all-conference status in the same year. The other was 2008 with Jonathan Hodge, Fredrik Qvicker, Derek Rende and Ben Rickett all claiming the honor. Rende, the volunteer assistant with this year's team, was the first Mocs golfer to merit selection all four years.
 
"Really happy for Paul, Sam, John and Garrett," Coach Blaine Woodruff began. "All four of these guys have worked hard and earned the recognition of being all-conference. I think it speaks to the depth of our lineup when all five guys can be the 'star' any given week.
 
"That's the type of balance you need come postseason. We're so excited with where we are as a group as we get ready for Regionals."
 
Conroy is a repeat pick from 2022 while the other three joined the squad over the summer. Houk transferred from nearby Tennessee Wesleyan, while Espinosa (King) and Engle (Oklahoma) travelled a further distance. It highlights the job Woodruff did in cobbling together a roster that finished 2022 ranked 134 on Golfweek's Sagarin Ratings and elevated to 45.
 
Conroy (70.97), Houk (71.12) and Espinosa (71.52) are all vying to unseat PGA Tour pro Stephan Jaeger's '12 school scoring mark of 71.14 in 2011-12. The trio is also do something equally special.
 
There have been just three under par seasons in school history with two to Jaeger, 1 under in 2011 and 22 under in 2012, and one by Jonathan Hodge '09 who played 2008 at 9 under. Conroy (-19), Houk (-14) and Espinosa (-1) are all there now with Engle (+9) not far off the pace.
 
Chattanooga's four selections led the league. ETSU added three with one each for Furman, Mercer and UNC Greensboro. The Bucs swept player awards with Mats Ege claiming Player of the Year, while Matthew Dodd-Berry was Freshman of the Year.
 
Furman's Matt Davidson was Coach of the Year. He authored a 39 spot jump in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Team Rankings from 95 to end 2022 to 56 currently. That ranks behind only UTC's leap 89 places but was clear of Mercer's 36 (151 to 115) and UNCG's 25 (76 to 51).
 
The Mocs await word of NCAA Regionals site. Chattanooga, ETSU, Furman and UNCG are all expected to earn bids. The selection show is Wednesday, May 3, at 1 p.m., on Golf Channel. There are six sites with play May 15-17 (Mon-Wed) in Auburn, Ala.; Salem, S.C.; Norman, Okla.; Bath, Mich.; Las Vegas, Nev.; and Morgan Hill, Calif.
 
Worth Noting

• Conroy is the 17th Moc with multiple All-SoCon honors. First since Wes Gosselin in 2016 and 2017.
• 18th season with multiple honorees. First time since 2018 when Lake Johnson and Luke Long were named. 12 of the 18 years have come since 2006.
• 6th time with three or more honorees. The last was 2011 with Steven Fox, Stephan Jaeger & Benni Weilguni.

 
 
2022-23 All-Southern Conference Team
Paul Conroy, Jr., Chattanooga
Garrett Engle, So., Chattanooga
Sam Espinosa, Jr., Chattanooga
John Houk, Jr., Chattanooga
Archie Davies, R-Jr., ETSU
Mats Ege, R-So., ETSU
Algot Kleen, So., ETSU
Will Morlan, So., Furman
Tobias Jonsson, Sr., Mercer
Nick Lyerly, Gr., UNCG
 
2022-23 All-Freshman Team
Matthew Dodd-Berry, ETSU
Harris Barth, Furman
Matthew Smith, Samford
Josh Lendach, Western Carolina
Max Cranford, Wofford
 
2022-23 Southern Conference Player of the Year
Mats Ege, R-So., ETSU
 
2022-23 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year
Matthew Dodd-Berry, ETSU
 
2022-23 Southern Conference Coach of the Year
Matt Davidson, Furman
 
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