Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris University men's golf junior Max Palmer and head coach Jerry Stone were among the Northeast Conference (NEC) postseason major award winners, as Palmer was named Golfer of the Year and Stone collected Coach of the Year plaudits, as announced by the league on its social media platforms Thursday.
Palmer becomes the third NEC Golfer of the Year in program history, joining C.G. Mercatoris (2011) and Ryan Prokay (2015). Stone's Coach of the Year honor is the fifth of his career and fourth on the men's side (2002-03, 2009-10, 2014-15). Palmer was joined on the All-NEC First Team by classmate Kyle Grube, who collects his first postseason conference plaudit.
RELEASE: To the Max! RMU's Max Palmer Takes Home NEC Golfer of the Year Honors
The Novi, Mich. native has put together one of the most consistent seasons Robert Morris has ever seen, owning the second-lowest stroke average in program history at 73.4. He has finished in the top five of half of the Colonials' 10 events, adding two other top-10 efforts to that number. In the spring season alone, Palmer hasn't finished lower than seventh, highlighted by a pair of second-place performances at the Towson Spring Invitational and NEC Championships. The junior has carded six rounds at or below par – hitting a season low of 69 twice – and stayed at or below a 74 throughout the spring.
Palmer previously captured NEC Rookie of the Year and All-NEC Second Team honors in 2017, and last season became the first sophomore in program history to be named to the All-NEC First Team. His career stroke average of 74.03 is 0.14 off the school record (Santiago Mejia, 2013-15), and he ranks third all-time in both top 10 finishes (15) and rounds at or below par (15).
Stone copies his last NEC Coach of the Year performance, bringing home the accolade after guiding his team to a conference title. A steady progression since the 2015 crown saw the Colonials finish fourth at the 2016 NEC Championships, third in 2017, and second in 2018 before this year's triumph. RMU won two other events this season at the NKU Fall Collegiate Classic and Abarta Coca-Cola Collegiate Invitational – the former establishing a program record for a 54-hole tournament by eight strokes.
Since Stone took over in the spring of 2001, the Colonials have finished top three at the NEC Championships on nine occasions and collected a total of 22 tournament victories. RMU is currently riding a streak of 10 consecutive seasons with at least one win and hasn't finished on the bottom half of the NEC Championships leaderboard since 2008.
Grube gives RMU two players on the All-NEC First Team for just the second time in program history (2015). The Indiana, Pa. product ranks second on the team in stroke average (75.7) and finished in the top five twice this season, including a third-place effort at the NEC Championships. Grube also finished third at the Abarta Coca-Cola Collegiate Invitational, carding a one-under 143. The junior tied Palmer with six rounds at or below par, with his best being a 70 in the first round of the Wright State Invitational.
An All-Tournament Team selection last month like Palmer, Grube's 2018-19 stroke average is the 15th lowest in program history. He ranks eighth all-time in career stroke average at 76.37, bringing it down from 77.47 and 77.37 the seasons prior.
Robert Morris, winners of its fourth NEC Championships last month, will be making its second NCAA Championships appearance next week at the Myrtle Beach Regional. The Colonials will tee off at TPC Myrtle Beach on Monday, May 13 to begin a three-day, 54-hole tournament featuring 13 other teams – eight being Power 5 schools – and five individuals. The top five teams and low individual not on one of those teams will advance to the NCAA Finals, which are held at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark. from May 24-29.
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