Ken Kong Earns Third-Team All-America Honors for CMS Men's Golf; Alex Wrenn, Mason Chiu Named Honorable Mention

Ken Kong Earns Third-Team All-America Honors for CMS Men's Golf; Alex Wrenn, Mason Chiu Named Honorable Mention

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Sophomore Ken Kong was chosen to the NCAA Division III PING All-America third team by the Golf Coaches Association of America, the organization announced this morning.

Kong was one of 24 players nationally to earn All-America distinction from the GCAA (eight on each of the three teams). In addition to Kong's honor, senior Alex Wrenn and sophomore Mason Chiu were both chosen to the honorable mention All-America team, giving the Stags a total of three honorees. 

Kong had a strong sophomore campaign from wire-to-wire, which saw him peak in the GolfStat Individual rankings in the top 10 in the nation. He began the year by shooting a 66 in a dual meet with Chapman in the fall, birdieing his final five holes in a row. He then had back-to-back individual medalist performances in the spring, winning The West Cup and the second SCIAC regular season championship on two straight weeks. He captured The West Cup by seven strokes with a 75-68-69-212, having two of the three rounds under 70 in the entire field of 81 players, and then won the second SCIAC regular season title with a 72-70-142, which won him the SCIAC Men's Golf Athlete of the Week honors for the second week in a row. He finished in the top 10 at the SCIAC Championships (eighth) for the second year in a row, and ended up in 32nd place at the NCAA Division III Championships. 

Wrenn was honored by the GCAA for the third time in his career, including a first-team All-America selection and two honorable mention honors. In the fall, he shot a 64 in the fall at the Embry Riddle Invitational, the low round of his career, finishing third out of 44 with a 77-64-71-212. He picked up a fifth-place finish at the first SCIAC regular season championship with a 74-71-145, and tied for 18th of 46 at the SCIAC Championships, closing out with an even-par 72 on his final round. He was also named to the Srixon/Cleveland Golf Division III All-America Scholar, as well as earning All-SCIAC honors for the fourth time in his four seasons. 

Chiu had an exception finish to his sophomore season, which saw him win individual medalist honors at the SCIAC Championships by seven strokes. He shot a seven-under 63 for his opening round, before finishing the three rounds at -5, the only golfer in the field under par. He kept his momentum going in the NCAA Division III Championships, finishing in 11th place overall to lead the Stags. He also had two top 10 finishes at the SCIAC regular season championships, tying for sixth in the first one with a 73-73-146 and then finishing fifth in the second one with a 75-75-150.

CMS continued to have strong representation on the PING All-America teams, earning multiple selections for the fifth year in a row. Last year, Jonathan Shaw ('18) earned third-team All-America honors, while Wrenn was on the honorable mention team. In 2017, Shaw and Matt Shuman ('18) both earned their way on to the honorable mention team. In 2016, when the Stags won the program's national title, Wrenn was a first-team selection, Shaw was on the third team and Kethan Reddy ('16) was named honorable mention, while in 2015, Reddy was a third-team All-American (after earning first-team honors in 2014) and Shaw was honorable mention.

The last time CMS did have a player honored on any of the All-America teams was in 2008, before Tain Lee earned All-America honors four straight years from 2009-12, including an individual national title in 2010. Brad Shigezawa followed suit with All-America honors in 2012 and 2013, including becoming the program's second individual national champion in 2013.

The Stags ended the year with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Division III Championships, their second straight top-10 finish at nationals and third in the last four years, including the national title in 2016. The eighth-place finish helped CMS lead the nation in the Learfield Directors' Cup standings during the spring season. 

To view the complete list of the PING Division III All-America selections, go to the following link:

GCAA Division III All-America Teams