Pavan Named 1st-Team All-American, Five Aggies Receive All-Region honors
Jun 08, 2010 | Men's Golf
June 8, 2010
Texas A&M senior Andrea Pavan received Div. I PING All-America honors and five Aggies were named to the PING All-Region squads, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced. As a team, the Aggies finished 2009-10 ranked No. 3 by Golfweek.
Pavan, from Rome, Italy, becomes Texas A&M's third first-team All-American, joining Phillip Parkin in 1984 and Anthony Rodriguez in 1995. Pavan set a school record with a 71.65 scoring average in 2009-10, which broke the old mark of 71.90 by Parkin in 1983-84. Pavan posted a victory at the John Burns Intercollegiate and also posted 11 top 25 individual finishes as a senior. In addition, Pavan finished as the low amateur with a 22nd place showing at the 2010 BMW Italian Open in Turin, Italy in May. At the Aggies' Team Awards Banquet, he was voted the Team MVP by his teammates and received the Bob Ellis Leadership Award.
"Andrea's success is obvious this year - he set the school scoring record, won a tournament, had five Top 5 finishes and two more Top 10s; but that only tells part of the story," Aggie coach J.T. Higgins said. "This was his team and he consistently came through for us every time we needed him. He won this award with his hard work and preparation and served as a model for his teammates on how to compete at golf at the highest level. He is so deserving of success and I could not be more proud for him."
Pavan led a parade of Aggies on the PING All-Region team as A&M put all five members of its NCAA Championships roster on the squad. Texas A&M was the only school in the nation with five selections on the all-region squad. Joining Pavan on the team were junior Nacho Elvira, freshman Cameron Peck, sophomore Jordan Russell and junior Conrad Shindler.
"We had an outstanding year," Higgins said. "I believe this is the highest we have ever been ranked to end the season and I am pretty sure we are the only team in the country that had five players earn All-Region honors. We play in one of the best conferences and toughest areas of the country so that is no small feat. I am incredibly proud of our players and staff and all that we accomplished this year and with four starters returning next year, I hope this is just the beginning of more great things to come."
The GCAA also announced that Peck was one of five freshmen from across the nation named to the organization's All-Freshman Team. Peck played in every tournament in his first season with the Aggies and was third on the team with 72.53 scoring average. Peck also posted 11 top 25 individual finishes, including five in the top five.
"From day one, Cameron set himself apart as one of the best freshman in the country," Higgins said. "He set the school freshman scoring record while playing in every tournament for one of the best teams in the country. Not only did he contribute, he was one of our leaders on the course. I think he has set the stage for what promises to be a great career at Texas A&M."
