NORFOLK, Va. – A pair of Old Dominion men's golfers were honored by the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) on Wednesday afternoon, as juniors Gustav Fransson and Chris Ayers were named first and second team All-State, respectively.
One of two ODU golfers to compete in all six tournaments, Fransson posted a team-best 70.56 average round score this season, good for 51st in the nation among Division I golfers. The Umea, Sweden native earned four top-10 finishes, including two third-place finishes and one second-place showing. His best tournament came at the ODU/OBX Intercollegiate, where the Umea, Sweden native finished with a 7-under 206, placing him in a tie for third and leading the Monarchs to second place. In total, Fransson shot under par in eight of his 16 rounds played.
Ayers finished the season second on the team with an average round score of 71.73. He started the 2019-2020 campaign on a high note, placing tied for fourth with a 4-under par at the Golfweek Program Challenge. Ayers followed that performance with his second of three top-15 finishes, as he posted a 5-under par at the VCU Invitational to help guide his team to its first tournament victory since the 2016-2017 season. The Wethersfield, Connecticut native competed in five tournaments this season.
VaSID selects a total of 10 golfers for its All-State teams, five on each, as well as Golfer of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Coach of the Year. Liberty's Jonathan Yaun was crowned the Golfer of the Year while Hayden Miller of George Mason earned Rookie of the Year honors. Jeff Forbes, the head coach of the James Madison men's golf club was named the Coach of the Year. ODU was one of just two teams, along with Liberty, to have more than one golfer earn All-State honors.
VaSID names 44 all-state teams in 23 sports each year, as well as an Academic All-State squad and an all-sports champion in both the University and College Divisions. Membership in VaSID is open to all media relations professionals working at a university or conference in the state of Virginia.
2020 VaSID All-State University Division Men's Golf Team
First Team
Gustav Fransson, Jr., Old Dominion
George Heath, So., James Madison
Ian Peng, So., VCU
Kieran Vincent, R-Jr., Liberty
Jonathan Yaun, So., Liberty
Second Team
Chris Ayers, Jr., Old Dominion
Alexandre Fuchs, Jr., Liberty
Mark Lawrence, Jr., R-Sr., Virginia Tech
Andrew Orischak, Sr., Virginia
Teagan Stephenson, Sr., Longwood
VaSID Golfer of the Year – Jonathan Yaun, So., Liberty
VaSID Coach of the Year – Jeff Forbes, James Madison
VaSID Rookie of the Year – Hayden Miller, Fr., George Mason
Fransson and Ayers Earn All-State Honors
Gustav Fransson (left) was named first team All-State while Chris Ayers (right) was named second team All-State