BRASELTON, Ga. – On the eve of the 2018 ASUN Men's Golf Championship, FGCU's
Cole Castro was named to the league's All-Freshman Team at the conference's tournament banquet Saturday night.
Castro competed in each of FGCU's final seven tournaments after not qualifying for the first three, but has been an impactful performer since stepping into the Eagles' lineup. He carries a stroke average of 75 on the year over 19 competitive rounds, and he boasts the lowest round among all FGCU golfers this year with a 67.
The Homestead, Fla., native claimed medalist honors out of 90 players at the Fort Lauderdale Intercollege in March with rounds of 70-73-67: 210 (-6). Castro opened his spring season with three-straight top-5 finishes: T-3rd, T-5th, 1st, and his six par-or-better rounds on the year are the 3rd-most on FGCU despite playing eight fewer rounds than the Green and Blue leaders.
"Cole is a natural talent who with some more work and refining can certainly be a top collegiate player," said FGCU head coach
Eric Booker. "When I work with him, I have a tough time finding anything wrong in his swing; there isn't much at all that needs to change in his mechanics because he hits it really solid. With some improvement in terms of course management and strategy he'll have a really bright future in this game."
The South Dade High School product's scoring average is the 4th-best among all ASUN freshmen. Of the three first-year players ahead of him in scoring average, they have one combined top-5 finish; Castro has three on his own.
Castro is FGCU's second-straight ASUN All-Freshman Team representative – joining
Doug Smith last year – and seventh overall. Three of the first five (Edward Figueroa, 2013; Daniel Mazziotta, 2008; Brandon Pena, 2009) went on to have standout careers for the Eagles as they rank 2nd-4th, respectively, in all-time career program scoring average. The other FGCU ASUN All-Freshman Team members are Jack Hernandez (2012) and Matt Cote (2011), with Cote being named ASUN Freshman of the Year.
Castro and the rest of the Eagles will now turn their focus to the ASUN Championship which gets underway Sunday morning from The Legends at Chateau Elan.
ASUN POSTSEASON AWARD WINNERS
Golfer of the Year: Dawson Armstrong, Lipscomb
Freshman of the Year: Michael Sakane, Jacksonville
Coach of the Year: Scott Schroeder, North Florida
ASUN FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
| Name |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown |
| * Dawson Armstrong |
Lipscomb |
Sr. |
Brentwood, Tenn. |
| * Raul Pereda |
Jacksonville |
Sr. |
Cordoba, Mexico |
| * Philip Knowles |
North Florida |
Jr. |
Bradenton, Fla. |
| * Jake Fendt |
Kennesaw State |
Jr. |
Suwanee, Ga. |
| Andrew Alligood |
North Florida |
Jr. |
Saint Johns, Fla. |
* Denotes a unanimous selection
ASUN SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
| Name |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown |
| Eduardo Carrete |
Jacksonville |
So. |
El Campanario, Mexico |
| Elliott Fullalove |
Jacksonville |
Sr. |
Kingswood, England |
| Wyatt Larkin |
Kennesaw State |
Jr. |
Canton, Ga. |
| Pablo Torres |
Kennesaw State |
Jr. |
Sevilla, Spain |
| Travis Trace |
North Florida |
Jr. |
Jacksonville, Fla. |
ASUN ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
| Name |
School |
Hometown |
| Cole Castro |
FGCU |
Homestead, Fla. |
| Michael Sakane |
Jacksonville |
Setegaya, Japan |
| Aaeri Krishnan |
Jacksonville |
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Brady Keran |
Kennesaw State |
Canton, Ga. |
| Michael Saccente |
North Florida |
New Smyrna Beach, Fla. |
FOLLOW ALONG
For schedule updates, news and information, visit FGCUAthletics.com. For the latest news and behind-the-scenes access to information, photos and videos, follow @FGCU_MGolf on Twitter and @FGCU_MGolf on Instagram.
COACH BOOKER
FGCU is led by 4th-year coach Eric Booker, a member of the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour (formerly the Nationwide Series) for portions of 17 years from 1990-2007. He has led the Eagles to a pair of wins in limited-field events the last two years, in addition to a tie for 1st at Stetson's Legacy Intercollegiate in February of 2018. Booker finished in the top 5 three times in tournaments on the PGA Tour, and also played in the U.S. Open and PGA Championship. He played in 62 career events on the PGA Tour, with his best finish being a tie for 3rd at the 1999 Honda Classic.
HELP THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
