Rankings
Emory, NYU and Carnegie Mellon Highlight WGCA Division III Fall Award Watchlists
November 5, 2026
The Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) announced its inaugural Division III fall award watchlists on November 5, recognizing outstanding coaches and student athletes from the fall 2026 collegiate golf season.
The watchlists feature 23 coaches, 14 Player of the Year candidates and seven Freshman of the Year candidates across three award categories: Jackie Steinmann WGCA National Coach of the Year Presented by Golf Pride, PING WGCA Player of the Year and WGCA Freshman of the Year Presented by StrackaLine.
Emory University leads the Player of the Year watchlist with three selections, while New York University has the most combined individual award nominations with four.
Emory Leads Player of the Year Selections, NYU Earns Four Individual Nominations
Emory places three golfers on the PING WGCA Player of the Year watchlist: Amanda Zheng, Carys Code and Zimo Li.
New York University follows with two Player of the Year candidates, Inha Jun and Yiyi (Elisa) Xue. Both Xue and Jiarui (Carrie) Li also appear on the Freshman of the Year watchlist, giving NYU four individual nominations across the two categories.
Carnegie Mellon’s Yixuan Chen, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps’ Katherine Keith and Trinity College’s Zorah Williams are each recognized on both the Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year watchlists.
Xue also earns recognition in both categories, bringing the total to four golfers nominated for both individual awards.
National Coach of the Year Watchlist
The Jackie Steinmann WGCA National Coach of the Year Presented by Golf Pride watchlist includes 23 coaches representing five regions.
The Central and Southeast regions each have five selections, while the Great Lakes and West regions have four apiece. The East region also has five representatives.
Great Lakes Region
- Dan Rodgers, Carnegie Mellon
- Lauren Grogan, Denison
- Evan Williams, Kenyon
- Craig Onsrud, Illinois Wesleyan
West Region
- Paulette Pera, UC Santa Cruz
- Lexi Nielsen, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
- Jackie Ralston, Mary Hardin-Baylor
- MaryJo McCloskey, George Fox
Central Region
- Sophia Connett, Wisconsin-Stout
- Mary Giorgi, St. Catherine
- Johnny Greene, Macalester
- Connor McKay, Grinnell
- Dave Reinhardt, Washington University in St. Louis
Southeast Region
- John Sjoberg, Emory
- Jane Hopkinson-Wood, Washington and Lee
- Bryan Hearn, Randolph-Macon
- Taylor Mottern, Sewanee
- Jesse Lawley, Maryville
East Region
- Tim Walko, Middlebury
- Stu Cady, Bowdoin
- Brad Johnson, New York University
- Andra Frappier, Trinity
- Jon Wilson, Wesleyan
View the Official WGCA Division III Fall Watchlists
Emory Places Three Golfers on Player of the Year Watchlist
The PING WGCA Player of the Year watchlist features 14 golfers representing 10 universities.
Emory leads all programs with three selections: Amanda Zheng, Carys Code and Zimo Li.
New York University follows with two selections, Inha Jun and Yiyi (Elisa) Xue.
Carnegie Mellon, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Hamilton, Huntingdon, Middlebury, Pomona-Pitzer, Trinity, Washington University in St. Louis and Wesleyan are also represented.
Complete Player of the Year Watchlist
- Yixuan Chen, Carnegie Mellon
- Katherine Keith, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
- Amanda Zheng, Emory
- Carys Code, Emory
- Zimo Li, Emory
- Aubrey Lee, Hamilton
- Yvette Gordon, Huntingdon
- Season Wei, Middlebury
- Inha Jun, New York University
- Yiyi (Elisa) Xue, New York University
- Annabelle Chan, Pomona-Pitzer
- Zorah Williams, Trinity
- Amy Beanblossom, Washington University in St. Louis
- Amanda Phillips, Wesleyan
View the Complete Player of the Year Watchlist
Seven Golfers Named to Freshman of the Year Watchlist
The WGCA Freshman of the Year Presented by StrackaLine watchlist includes seven golfers from six universities.
New York University leads with two selections, Jiarui (Carrie) Li and Yiyi (Elisa) Xue.
Carnegie Mellon’s Yixuan Chen, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps’ Katherine Keith and Trinity’s Zorah Williams are also recognized, with all three appearing on the Player of the Year watchlist.
Washington University in St. Louis’s Eliza Meltzer and Williams College’s Angela Nip complete the seven player field.
Complete Freshman of the Year Watchlist
- Yixuan Chen, Carnegie Mellon
- Katherine Keith, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
- Zorah Williams, Trinity
- Jiarui (Carrie) Li, New York University
- Yiyi (Elisa) Xue, New York University
- Eliza Meltzer, Washington University in St. Louis
- Angela Nip, Williams
Four freshmen, Chen, Keith, Williams and Xue, earned nominations for both Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.
View the Complete Freshman of the Year Watchlist
WGCA Recognizes Division III Standouts Ahead of Spring Season
The inaugural Division III fall award watchlists highlight coaches and student athletes who made an impact during the opening half of the 2026 to 2027 collegiate golf season.
Emory leads the Player of the Year selections with three golfers, while New York University has four combined nominations across the two individual award categories.
Four freshmen appear on both individual watchlists, recognizing their early contributions at the Division III level.
The WGCA will continue evaluating standout performances throughout the spring collegiate golf season as programs compete for conference and national honors.
