UT MARTIN GOLF RACKS UP FOUR OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE POSTSEASON HONOREES

On Apr 23, 2022

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – For the second straight year, the University of Tennessee at Martin golf program has accounted for four Ohio Valley Conference postseason accolades as Tate Chumley and Bryson Morrell were named to the All-OVC squad while Garrett Chumley and Jonathan Xoinis earned All-OVC Newcomer honors today.

The awards were announced prior to today’s practice round for the 2022 OVC Championships, which officially tee off tomorrow at Dalhousie Golf Club in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

The Skyhawks were one of only three teams to boast multiple members of the All-OVC team, which is comprised of 10 individuals. Tate Chumley becomes only the seventh golfer in UT Martin history to receive an All-OVC mention twice in a career while Morrell is just the 12^th Skyhawk to ever record All-OVC recognition (ninth since 2015).

Meanwhile, UT Martin was the only school to nab a pair of All-OVC Newcomer selections – marking the first time in school history that the Skyhawks recorded multiple honorees on the five-man squad. Garrett Chumley and Xoinis become the 11^th and 12^th UT Martin representatives to come away with an All-OVC Newcomer award.

A senior from Murfreesboro, Tenn., Competing in all 11 tournaments, he ranks 12^th in the league with a 73.6 scoring average and placed in the top-20 on five different occasions. That included a pair of top-five efforts, including his first career collegiate victory at the TVA Community Credit Union Invitational hosted by North Alabama on Oct. 18-19. That medalist performance led to an OVC Golfer of the Week award, which was the second in his storied career. He posted 11 rounds of par or better, including a season-best 68 in the third round of the TVA Community Credit Union Invitational on Oct. 19 and again in the second round of the Battle at Black Creek on Oct. 25. He delivered 24 countable scores in 28 opportunities while leading the Skyhawks in birdies (80), least bogeys per round (3.43) and greens in regulation (.662).

Morrell’s 74.5 stroke average ranks 24^th in the league as he took part in 10 events in 2021-22. The junior out of Knoxville, Tenn. carded a pair of top-10 tournament finishes, including a season-best third-place effort at the Grover Page Classic on Oct. 4-5. In that event, he generated his best two scores of the season with back-to-back 68’s in the opening two rounds on Oct. 4. Overall, he was responsible for eight rounds of par or under-par scores, pacing the Skyhawks in par-3 scoring (3.17) and par-5 scoring (4.84) while tacking on three eagles and 60 birdies. He earned 21 countable scores in 25 tries as a member of the UT Martin scoring lineup.

A true freshman from Murfreesboro, Tenn., Garrett Chumley cements a great debut season as he ranked 17^th in the OVC with a 74.1 scoring average over 11 tournaments. He became only the sixth Skyhawk to ever claim multiple OVC Golfer of the Week honors in a single season and was the first UT Martin rookie to accomplish that feat since Ben Reeves (2012-13). He won his second career tournament at the collegiate level – topping the field at the Derek Dolenc Invitational hosted by SIUE on Sept. 27-28. In the first round of that event, he carded a 67 which was the lowest score by any Skyhawk in 2021-22. All in all, he ranked first on the squad in eagles (four), pars per round (11.43) and fairways hit (.730) while producing countable scores in 23 of his 28 rounds.

Xoinis currently ranks 20^th in the OVC in stroke average (74.4) as he competed in all 11 tournaments during his redshirt freshman campaign. The Chattanooga, Tenn. native secured four top-20 finishes, including a career-best fifth-place performance at the Grover Page Classic on Oct. 4-5. In 28 opportunities in the UT Martin lineup, he registered 20 countable scores while shooting par or better on six separate occasions. That included a season-best 68 in the second round of the Battle at Black Creek on Oct. 25. He was named OVC Golfer of the Week on April 6, sharing the award with freshman teammate Garrett Chumley. Overall, Xoinis ranked second on the Skyhawk squad with 77 birdies while adding a pair of eagles in 2021-22.

The Skyhawks begin the 2022 OVC Championships tomorrow, teeing off Hole No. 1 alongside Belmont and SIUE in 10-minute intervals from 9:40 a.m. to 10:20 a.m.