May 2, 2017
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - A pair of Penn State men's golfers were recognized with Big Ten honors in a vote of the league's coaches, the conference office announced Tuesday. Charles Huntzinger was a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten honoree, while Miller earned second-team honors and the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
One of three unanimous first-team selections, Huntzinger is the sixth First Team All-Big Ten honoree in Penn State's history and the first since 2010. He follows up a second-team nod as a freshman last season.
The sophomore from Duluth, Georgia is coming off a fourth-place individual finish at the Big Ten Championships over the weekend, marking his fifth top-four tournament finish of the year. He played in every event this season for the Nittany Lions, producing an average score of 71.4 in 26 rounds and one individual tourney title at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate in October.
"Charles winning at Tennessee last fall, along with his top-five finish at the Big Ten Championships, along with a handful of other excellent events put him among some great players at the top of league," Greg Nye, Nittany Lion head coach said. "Two-consecutive years in this company is a special achievement."
Miller, a junior from New Tripoli, Pennsylvania, earns the first conference recognition of his career with Second Team All-Big Ten honors and the Sportsmanship Award selection.
The Sportsmanship Award goes to those individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. Additionally, the student-athlete must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Miller finished the Big Ten Championships one stroke behind Huntzinger, coming in tied for sixth place. He took to the course in all 10 tournaments for the Nittany Lions, tallying an average score of 71.7 in 26 rounds with four individual tourney titles.
"Cole's wins at Florida State, and Kingsmill, along with his sixth-place finish at Big Tens and so many other quality finishes put him in a place close to first team with Charles," Nye said. "Cole has been a huge part of our team success as a leader. He is a terrific competitor while being a great sportsman at the same time."
A full list of men's golf Big Ten awards is below.
2017 BIG TEN MEN'S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE AND INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS
Big Ten Player of the Year: Dylan Meyer, Illinois
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Michael Feagles, Illinois
Big Ten Coach of the Year: Mike Small, Illinois
FIRST TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Michael Feagles, Illinois
NICK HARDY, Illinois
Edoardo Lipparelli, Illinois
DYLAN MEYER, Illinois
Kyle Mueller, Michigan
Ryan Lumsden, Northwestern
DYLAN WU, Northwestern
Charles Huntzinger, Penn State
SECOND TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Raymond Knoll, Iowa
Matthew Walker, Iowa
Charlie Netzel, Michigan State
Sam Weatherhead, Michigan State
Will Grimmer, Ohio State
Cole Miller, Penn State
Austin Eoff, Purdue
Fernando Barco, Purdue
Unanimous selections in ALL CAPS
SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD HONOREES
Bryan Baumgarten, Illinois
Jack Sparrow, Indiana
Carson Schaake, Iowa
Tim Colanta, Maryland
Reed Hrynewich, Michigan
Michael Sharp, Michigan State
Riley Johnson, Minnesota
Cameron Jones, Nebraska
Sam Triplett, Northwestern
Daniel Wetterich, Ohio State
Cole Miller, Penn State
Fernando Barco, Purdue
Jack Pangos, Rutgers
Pete Kuhl, Wisconsin