2011–12 Great American Conference championships

Great American Conference

Conference	NCAA
Founded	2011
Division	Division II

The Great American Conference sponsors championship events for 12 of its 13 sports. The football champion is the team with the best conference record.

The 2011–12 season was the first year of the conference. Arkansas Tech led the way with four championships (3 team, 1 individual). East Central and Harding each had three. As a new conference it did not receive automatic qualifying to NCAA championships; however, several teams and individuals were selected to postseason championships.

East Central, Harding, and Southern Arkansas participated in the Men's Cross Country regional meet with ECU placing 2nd (3 top 10 runners) to advance to the national meet where ECU earned an 11th-place finish. Arkansas Tech, East Central, Harding, and Southern Arkansas participated in the Women's Cross Country regional meet with HU placing 7th (1 top 10 runner). Arkansas Tech's volleyball team fell in the regional first round while the men's basketball team advanced to the regional finals, and Ouachita Baptist's men's tennis team advanced to the national quarterfinals. Rebecka Surteval (ATU) finished 16th at the Women's Golf super regional. Jack Garrett (ATU) finished 12th and Matt Jennings (HSU) finished 54th at the Men's Golf super regional. Southern Arkansas ended the Baseball regional with a 1–2 record, winning its first game.

Men's Cross Country

Champion

Team – East Central

Individual – Ezekiel Kissorio, East Central

East Central placed the top three individual finishes and four of the top six to capture the inaugural Great American Conference Men's Cross Country Championship.

ECU's Ezekiel Kissorio, Armando Saldivar, and Daniel Kiptoo finished first, second, and third, respectively. All seven of ECU's designated runners finished in the top 10. ECU finished with a total of 17 points. ^[1]

Runner of the Year Ezekiel Kissorio, East Central Freshman of the Year Lajos Farkas, Harding Coach of the Year Steve Sawyer, East Central

All-GAC Team Ezekiel Kissorio, East Central Armando Saldivar, East Central Daniel Kiptoo, East Central Cale Eidson, East Central Jimmy Sutrick, East Central Lajos Farkas, Harding Austin Christian, East Central Mickey Hammer, Southern Arkansas Joel Dutton, East Central Phillip Biwott, Harding

Championships

Saturday, October 22
Host: Harding University (Searcy, AR)

Team				Individual (Top Ten)
1	East Central	17		1	Ezekiel Kissorio (ECU)	24:26.33
2	Harding	47		2	Armando Saldivar (ECU)	24:32.84
3	Southern Arkansas	75		3	Daniel Kiptoo (ECU)	24:39.32
4	Arkansas-Monticello	115		4	Philip Biwott (HU)	25:00.41
				5	Cale Eidson (ECU)	25:05.37
				6	Jimmy Sutrick (ECU)	25:05.54
				7	Lajos Farkas (HU)	25:15.97
				8	Austin Christian (ECU)	25:18.01
				9	Mickey Hammer (SAU)	25:33.99
				10	Joel Dutton (ECU)	25:38.73

Women's Cross Country

Champion

Team – Harding

Individual – Gladys Kimtai, Harding

Harding placed all seven of its runners in the top 20 to win the inaugural Great American Conference Women's Cross Country Championship.

Four of Harding's seven runners finished in top 10 in the 5-kilometer race, highlighted by a first-place finish from Gladys Kimtai and a second-place finish from Eva Zaborowska. Harding finished with a total of 27 points. ^[2]

Runner of the Year Gladys Kimtai, Harding Freshman of the Year Ewa Zaborowska, Harding Coach of the Year Steve Guymon, Harding

All-GAC 1st Team Olivia Campbell, Arkansas Tech Cheryl Nolan, Arkansas Tech Samantha Bartlett, East Central ReGina Germaine, East Central Colleta Songol, East Central Amber Walker, East Central Dallis Bailey, Harding Gladys Kimtai, Harding Mary Samoei, Harding Ewa Zaborowska, Harding All-GAC 2nd Team Miranda Claxton, East Central Andrea McKinney, East Central Allison Dixon, Harding Amber Priest, Harding Rachel Roberts, Harding Johanna Casey, Ouachita Baptist Carli Langley, Southern Arkansas Olivia Ornelas, Southern Arkansas Jennifer Osborn, Southwestern Oklahoma State Melissa Banks, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Championships

Saturday, October 22
Host: Harding University (Searcy, AR)

Team				Individual (Top Ten)
1	Harding	27		1	Gladys Kimtai (HU)	17:18.07
2	East Central	39		2	Ewa Zaborowska (HU)	17:30.72
3	Arkansas Tech	109		3	Cheryl Nolan (ATU)	17:44.86
4	Southern Arkansas	111		4	Mary Samoei (HU)	17:49.80
5	Southwestern Oklahoma State	112		5	Amber Walker (ECU)	17:56.09
6	Ouachita Baptist	167		6	Samantha Bartlett (ECU)	18:08.19
7	Henderson State	191		7	ReGina Germaine (ECU)	18:31.49
8	Southeastern Oklahoma State	224		8	Dallis Bailey (HU)	18:36.85
9	Arkansas-Monticello	275		9	Olivia Campbell (ATU)	18:38.53
				10	Colleta Songol (ECU)	18:45.24

Football

Champion

Ouachita Baptist

Ouachita Baptist clinched the inaugural Great American Conference Championship by defeating Southeastern Oklahoma State with a final score of 21–18. OBU (7–2, 6–0 GAC) finished the season at 7–3, and 6–1 in Great American Conference play. The conference championship marks the first since 1982. ^[3]

Offensive Player of the Year Casey Cooper, Ouachita Baptist Defensive Player of the Year Jason Catchings, East Central Freshman of the Year Devin Benton, Southwestern Oklahoma State Coach of the Year Todd Knight, Ouachita Baptist All-GAC 1st Team QB – Casey Cooper, Ouachita Baptist RB – Mark Johnson, Southern Arkansas RB – Kale Gelles, Harding WR – D.J. Stephens, Arkansas-Monticello WR – A.J. Whitmore, Arkansas Tech WR – Zach Patteson, East Central TE – Ryan Shelley, Southeastern Oklahoma State UT – Jeremy Holt, Harding C – Seth Oxner, Arkansas-Monticello OL – Carlos Savala, East Central OL – Garrett Taylor, Harding OL – Roy Richard, Ouachita Baptist OL – Desmund Farris, East Central DE – Armonty Bryant, East Central DE – Roland Dampeer, Arkansas Tech DT – Taurus Williams, Ouachita Baptist DT – Antonio Leak, Henderson State ILB – Terrence Garrett, Ouachita Baptist ILB – Keaton Stigger, Henderson State OLB – Jason Catchings, East Central OLB – Bennie Anderson, Henderson State CB – Dontae Smith, East Central CB – Marvin Tribble, Southwestern Oklahoma State S – Clarence Laster, Southwestern Oklahoma State S – Norris Wrenn, East Central P – Derek Jambon, Arkansas-Monticello K – Eddy Carmona, Harding RS – A.J. Whitmore, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 2nd Team QB – Tyler Vanderzee, East Central RB – Jarvis Smith, Henderson State RB – Nakita Myles, Arkansas-Monticello WR – George Robbins, East Central WR – Esau Bauknight, Southwestern Oklahoma State WR – Brett Reece, Ouachita Baptist TE – Phillip Supernaw, Ouachita Baptist UT – Bruce Hatton, Southwestern Oklahoma State C – Hunter Soper, Ouachita Baptist OL – Kyle Smith, Ouachita Baptist OL – Allen Hale, Southern Arkansas OL – Corey Godbolt, Ouachita Baptist OL – Tory Day, Harding DE – Josh Aldridge, Harding DE – Robbie Aldridge, Henderson State DT – Calvin Ursin, Arkansas-Monticello DT – Devin Benton, Southwestern Oklahoma State ILB – Kerel James, East Central ILB – Aaron Gillaspie, Harding OLB – Johnny Seals, Southeastern Oklahoma State OLB – Abraham Felton, Arkansas-Monticello CB – Eric Crocker, Arkansas-Monticello CB – A.J. Williams, Ouachita Baptist S – Jeremy Rodenburg, Henderson State S – Izzy Eziakor, Southeastern Oklahoma State P – Brian Gonzalez, East Central K – Colton Rainey, Southwestern Oklahoma State RS – Dontae Smith, East Central All-GAC Honorable Mention QB – Dustin Stenta, Southwestern Oklahoma State RB – Chris Rycraw, Ouachita Baptist WR – Kenneth Robey, Arkansas-Monticello WR – Tyler O'Quin, Harding TE – Colter Huff, East Central C – David Rebata, Henderson State OL – Kevin Rodriguez, Henderson State OL – Ronald Penn, Arkansas-Monticello DE – Lonnell Rice, East Central DE – Lis Leota, Southwestern Oklahoma State DT – Erik Howell, East Central ILB – A.J. Steele, Southern Arkansas ILB – Amos Cherry, East Central OLB – Tyler McGrew, East Central OLB – Augustine Ume-Ezeoke, Ouachita Baptist CB – Wes Brady, Henderson State CB – Roderick Cohn, Harding S – Jasper Bodiford, Harding S – Jacolby Stewart, Southern Arkansas P – Clark Gaddis, Ouachita Baptist RS – Travarus Brown, Southern Arkansas

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Ouachita Baptist	6–1	.857	7–3	.700
Henderson State	4–1	.800	6–4	.600
East Central	6–2	.750	8–3	.727
Harding	3–3	.500	4–7	.364
Arkansas-Monticello	3–3	.500	5–6	.455
Southern Arkansas	3–4	.429	3–7	.300
Southwestern Oklahoma State	3–5	.375	5–6	.455
Arkansas Tech	1–4	.200	2–8	.200
Southeastern Oklahoma State	1–7	.125	2–8	.200

Season

The Arkansas schools were not able to play a complete conference schedule due to the exit agreement with the Gulf South Conference.

Date		Away Team		Home Team
September 1		Henderson State	14	Central Arkansas	38
September 1		Southwestern Oklahoma State	31	Northwestern Oklahoma State	28
September 3	*	Arkansas Tech	31	Arkansas-Monticello	38
September 3	*	Harding	63	Southern Arkansas	14
September 3		East Central	31	Incarnate Word	21
September 10	*	Southern Arkansas	31	Southwestern Oklahoma State	22
September 10		Central Oklahoma	23	Southeastern Oklahoma State	30
September 10		Texas College	0	Arkansas-Monticello	41
September 10	*	Henderson State	35	Harding	21
September 10		Arkansas Tech	31	Southwest Baptist	20
September 10	*	East Central	18	Ouachita Baptist	31
September 15		Shepherd Technical College	0	Harding	75
September 17	‡	Northeastern State	38	East Central	45
September 17	*	Southeastern Oklahoma State	24	Southern Arkansas	21
September 17		Delta State	47	Arkansas Tech	32
September 17	*	Southwestern Oklahoma State	17	Henderson State	13
September 17	*β	Ouachita Baptist	38	Arkansas-Monticello	20
September 22		Ouachita Baptist	39	Texas A&M-Commerce	33
September 24		Delta State	34	Henderson State	31
September 24		West Alabama	17	Arkansas Tech	12
September 24		Arkansas-Monticello	5	West Georgia	21
September 24		Harding	20	North Alabama	28
September 24	*	Southeastern Oklahoma State	27	East Central	37
September 24		Central Oklahoma	20	Southwestern Oklahoma State	27
September 24		Southern Arkansas	21	Valdosta State	38
October 1		Henderson State	50	West Georgia	30
October 1		Arkansas Tech	16	Central Missouri	42
October 1		East Central	21	Central Oklahoma	41
October 1		Ouachita Baptist	14	Delta State	45
October 1		Harding	17	West Alabama	31
October 1	*	Southwestern Oklahoma State	23	Southeastern Oklahoma State	20
October 1		Valdosta State	9	Arkansas-Monticello	23
October 1		North Alabama	42	Southern Arkansas	14
October 6		Arkansas-Monticello	20	Delta State	34
October 8		Valdosta State	40	Ouachita Baptist	13
October 8	*	East Central	29	Southwestern Oklahoma State	12
October 8		Northeastern State	38	Southeastern Oklahoma State	28
October 8		Southern Arkansas	10	West Alabama	38
October 8		West Georgia	41	Harding	24
October 8		North Alabama	44	Arkansas Tech	10
October 15	*	Henderson State	30	Southeastern Oklahoma State	14
October 15		Harding	41	Northeastern State	49
October 15	*	Arkansas Tech	17	Southern Arkansas	49
October 15	*	Arkansas-Monticello	9	East Central	34
October 15	*	Ouachita Baptist	48	Southwestern Oklahoma State	38
October 22	*	Southern Arkansas	43	Ouachita Baptist	53
October 22	*	Southwestern Oklahoma State	28	Harding	70
October 22		Northeastern State	47	Arkansas-Monticello	46
October 22	*‡	East Central	41	Henderson State	42
October 22	*	Southeastern Oklahoma State	16	Arkansas Tech	28
October 29	*	East Central	31	Arkansas Tech	16
October 29		Southwestern Oklahoma State	13	Northeastern State	42
October 29	*	Ouachita Baptist	31	Harding	27
October 29	*	Southeastern Oklahoma State	20	Arkansas-Monticello	24
October 29		Henderson State	3	South Alabama	28
November 5		McKendree	10	Henderson State	16
November 5	*	Arkansas Tech	20	Southwestern Oklahoma State	23
November 5	*	Arkansas-Monticello	28	Southern Arkansas	53
November 5	*‡	Harding	16	East Central	23
November 5	*	Ouachita Baptist	21	Southeastern Oklahoma State	18
November 12	*	Henderson State	41	Ouachita Baptist	36
November 12	*	Southeastern Oklahoma State	9	Harding	16
November 12	*	Southern Arkansas	6	East Central	49
November 12	*	Southwestern Oklahoma State	21	Arkansas-Monticello	35
* – Conference Game β – Boomtown Classic (El Dorado, AR) ‡ – Overtime

Women's Soccer

Champion

East Central

After scoreless regulation and overtime periods, East Central defeated Ouachita Baptist 3–1 in penalty kicks to capture the inaugural Great American Conference Women's Soccer Championship.

ECU, the conference's regular season champ as well, recorded successful penalty kicks from Laura McNab, Rachel Hudgins and Carla Rodriguez to capture the victory. Morgan Pitchford made the first penalty kick for OBU, but her team's next three shootout participants were unsuccessful in their attempts, setting up Rodriguez' game-winner. ^[4]

Offensive Player of the Year Whitney Watts, East Central Defender of the Year Kira Bertrand, Southwestern Oklahoma State Goalkeeper of the Year Whitley Hoppe, Ouachita Baptist Freshman of the Year Margaret Glutz, East Central Coach of the Year Riley Bailey, East Central

All-GAC 1st Team F – Courtney Hailey, Southwestern Oklahoma State F – Adriana Lucar, Harding F – Whitney Watts, East Central F – Beth Wendl, Ouachita Baptist M – Josie Price, Southwestern Oklahoma State M – Jessica Carbonara, Southwestern Oklahoma State M – Lauren Hatch, Ouachita Baptist M – Laura McNab, East Central D – Carrie Lieblong, Ouachita Baptist D – Hannah Hatcher, Harding D – Margaret Glutz, East Central D – Kira Bertrand, Southwestern Oklahoma State GK – Whitley Hoppe, Ouachita Baptist All-GAC 2nd Team F – Kelsey Visor, Southwestern Oklahoma State F – Samantha Nunez, Southwestern Oklahoma State F – Ashley Bradford, East Central M – Ashley Royce, Harding M – Katie Glutz, East Central M – Samantha Rice, East Central M – Miranda Lytle, Ouachita Baptist D – Carla Rodriguez, East Central D – Natalie Crosslin, Southwestern Oklahoma State D – Chelsea Brandon, Harding D – Mary Whisenhunt, Ouachita Baptist GK – Adrianna Phininzy, East Central All-GAC Honorable Mention M – Hannah Rudebusch, Southwestern Oklahoma State D – Jessica Syswerda, East Central D – Brie Munoz, Ouachita Baptist GK – Chelsey Dodd, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
East Central	5–1–0	.833	11–6–2	.632
Southwestern Oklahoma State	4–2–0	.667	6–11–2	.368
Ouachita Baptist	3–3–0	.500	8–9–1	.472
Harding	0–6–0	.000	4–13–1	.250

Tournament

Friday-Sunday, November 4–6
Host: East Central University (Ada, OK)

	Semifinals					Finals
	1	East Central	6
	4	Harding	0
						1	East Central (p)	0 (3)
						3	Ouachita Baptist	0 (1)
	2	Southwestern Oklahoma State	0
	3	Ouachita Baptist	1

• All-Tournament Team

F – Whitney Watts, East Central (Most Valuable Player)

F – Beth Wendl, Ouachita Baptist

F – Chelsea Brandon, Harding

F – Adriana Lucar, Harding

F – Kelsey Visor, Southwestern Oklahoma State

M – Laura McNab, East Central

M – Katie Glutz, East Central

M – Ashley McMahon, Southwestern Oklahoma State

M – Miranda Lytle, Ouachita Baptist

D – Margaret Glutz, East Central

GK – Adrianna Phininzy, East Central

GK – Whitley Hoppe, Ouachita Baptist

Volleyball

Champion

Arkansas Tech

It is only fitting the inaugural Great American Conference Volleyball Tournament Championship was decided in five sets. Arkansas Tech defeated Harding 3–2 to capture the tournament title to go along with the program's regular season championship.

It was ATU's third five set win over Harding this season. Final game scores were 20–25, 25–17, 25–16, 25–27, and 15–11. ^[5]

Player of the Year Lunden Azuara, Southeastern Oklahoma State Newcomer of the Year Ty Lindberg, Henderson State Freshman of the Year Tiara Ewegbu, Southeastern Oklahoma State Kalyn Helton, Harding Coach of the Year Kristy Bayer, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 1st Team OH – Lunden Azuara, Southeastern Oklahoma State OH – Mollie Arnold, Harding OH – Laura Farney, Arkansas Tech MB – Sara Motsinger, Arkansas Tech MB – LaKendra Sanders, Southwestern Oklahoma State S – Amber Cerrillos, Arkansas Tech L – Allison Frizzell, Ouachita Baptist All-GAC 2nd Team OH – Noelle Cope, East Central OH – Ty Lindberg, Henderson State S – Shayla May, East Central L – Sladjana Smiljanic, Southwestern Oklahoma State MB – Tiara Iwegbu, Southeastern Oklahoma State MB – Libby Merritt, Ouachita Baptist OP – Courtney Smith, Southern Arkansas All-GAC Honorable Mention MB – Brittany Ryan, Arkansas Tech OH – Amy Kleypas, Arkansas-Monticello OH – Kalyn Helton, Harding MB – Alyssa Short, Harding MB – Tatiana Booth, East Central OH – Jordan White, Southern Arkansas OP – Bailee Graham, Harding

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Arkansas Tech	16–0	1.000	35–4	.897
Harding	13–3	.813	25–8	.758
Southeastern Oklahoma State	10–6	.625	14–19	.424
Ouachita Baptist	9–7	.563	18–13	.581
East Central	8–8	.500	14–18	.438
Southern Arkansas	7–9	.438	17–16	.515
Southwestern Oklahoma State	5–11	.313	9–19	.321
Arkansas-Monticello	4–12	.250	7–23	.233
Henderson State	0–16	.000	4–28	.125

Tournament

Friday-Saturday, November 11–12
Host: Arkansas Tech University (Russellville, AR)

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Arkansas Tech	3
	8	Arkansas-Monticello	0
						1	Arkansas Tech	3
						5	East Central	1
	5	Ouachita Baptist	1
	4	East Central	3
											1	Arkansas Tech	3
											3	Harding	2
	3	Harding	3
	6	Southwestern Oklahoma State	0
						3	Harding	3
						7	Southern Arkansas	0
	7	Southeastern Oklahoma State	1
	2	Southern Arkansas	3

• All-Tournament Team

L – Brennae Benda, Arkansas Tech (Most Valuable Player)

OH – Laura Farney, Arkansas Tech

OP – Thabata Galvao, Arkansas Tech

OH – Mollie Arnold, Harding

MB – Alyssa Short, Harding

OH – Jordan White, Southern Arkansas

OH – Noelle Cope, East Central

Men's Basketball

Champion

Arkansas Tech

Top-seeded and nationally ranked No. 21 Arkansas Tech captured the inaugural Great American Conference Men's Basketball Championship by defeating No. 7 seed Southwestern Oklahoma State by a final score of 69–58.

With the win over SWOSU, ATU has now been the victor of three of its past four conference championship tournaments. Arkansas Tech was Gulf South Conference champions in 2009 and 2010. ^[6]

Player of the Year Johnie Davis, Arkansas Tech Defender of the Year Thomas Davis, Southwestern Oklahoma State Newcomer of the Year Denzel Lyles, Henderson State Freshman of the Year Antonio Worthy, Southeastern Oklahoma State Coach of the Year Doug Karleskint, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 1st Team G – Johnie Davis, Arkansas Tech G – LA Farmer, Arkansas-Monticello G – Denzel Lyles, Henderson State C – Zach Roddenberry, Harding G – Sergio Crowe, Arkansas-Monticello All-GAC 2nd Team F – Thomas Davis, Southwestern Oklahoma State G – Austin Mitchell, Ouachita Baptist G – Jared Williamson, Arkansas Tech G – Kori Forge, Arkansas-Monticello G – Jonathan Fitzergald, Henderson State All-GAC Honorable Mention G – Zac Downing, Southeastern Oklahoma State C – Will Paul, Arkansas Tech F – Ricardo Hall, Arkansas-Monticello G – Nigel Ramsey, Ouachita Baptist F – Andrew Ensley, Henderson State

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Arkansas Tech	13–3	.813	26–6	.813
Henderson State	11–5	.688	16–11	.593
Arkansas-Monticello	10–6	.625	21–9	.700
Ouachita Baptist	8–8	.500	16–12	.571
Southeastern Oklahoma State	8–8	.500	12–17	.414
Harding	8–8	.500	13–14	.481
Southwestern Oklahoma State	6–10	.375	17–12	.586
Southern Arkansas	6–10	.375	13–16	.448
East Central	2–14	.125	5–21	.192

Tournament

Thursday-Sunday, March 1–4
Host: Bartlesville Sports Commission (Bartlesville, OK)

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Arkansas Tech	54
	8	Southern Arkansas	53
						1	Arkansas Tech	67
						4	Ouachita Baptist	62
	5	Ouachita Baptist	85
	4	Southeastern Oklahoma State	65
											1	Arkansas Tech	69
											6	Southwestern Oklahoma State	58
	3	Henderson State	60
	6	Southwestern Oklahoma State	81
						6	Southwestern Oklahoma State	79
						2	Arkansas-Monticello	76
	7	Arkansas-Monticello	58
	2	Harding	54

• All-Tournament Team

G – Jared Williamson, Arkansas Tech (Most Valuable Player)

G – Johnie Davis, Arkansas Tech

G – Chase Elliott, Southwestern Oklahoma State

G – Dominick Cornelius, Southwestern Oklahoma State

F – Michael Morris, Ouachita Baptist

G – Nigel Ramsey, Ouachita Baptist

F – Zach Roddenberry, Harding

G – LA Farmer, Arkansas-Monticello

Women's Basketball

Champion

Southwestern Oklahoma State

No. 2 seed Southwestern Oklahoma State captured the inaugural Great American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament championship with a 69–58 win over No. 4 seed Harding.

With the win over Harding, SWOSU won its first post-season tournament championship since 1998 and finished the season on a seven-game winning streak. ^[7]

Player of the Year Darcie Dick, Southwestern Oklahoma State Defender of the Year Roselis Silva, Arkansas Tech Newcomer of the Year Darcie Dick, Southwestern Oklahoma State Freshman of the Year Montana Lewis, Harding Coach of the Year Kelsi Musick, Southwestern Oklahoma State

All-GAC 1st Team G – Darcie Dick, Southwestern Oklahoma State G – Roselis Silva, Arkansas Tech F – Natalia Santos, Arkansas Tech C – Sumiya Darden, Southwestern Oklahoma State F – Kristen Celsor, Harding All-GAC 2nd Team G/F – Katie Horsman, Arkansas Tech G – Sierra Rollins, Harding G – Cheree Freeman, Henderson State G – Nikki Nester, Southeastern Oklahoma State G – Domino Miller, Ouachita Baptist All-GAC Honorable Mention G – Alex Hart, Arkansas-Monticello G – Nashia James, Ouachita Baptist G – A'Laeshia Adams, Ouachita Baptist G – Chelsea Johnson, Arkansas-Monticello G – SaRaya Oyler, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Arkansas Tech	13–3	.813	22–4	.846
Southwestern Oklahoma State	12–4	.750	20–9	.690
Ouachita Baptist	10–6	.625	18–10	.643
Harding	9–7	.563	18–11	.621
Henderson State	7–9	.438	14–13	.519
Arkansas-Monticello	7–9	.438	11–16	.407
East Central	6–10	.375	8–19	.296
Southeastern Oklahoma State	6–10	.375	11–17	.393
Southern Arkansas	2–14	.125	2–24	.077

Tournament

Thursday-Sunday, March 1–4
Host: Bartlesville Sports Commission (Bartlesville, OK)

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Arkansas Tech	72
	8	Southeastern Oklahoma State	84
						8	Southeastern Oklahoma State	54
						4	Harding	62
	5	Harding	78
	4	Henderson State	52
											4	Harding	58
											3	Southwestern Oklahoma State	69
	3	Southwestern Oklahoma State	81
	6	East Central	46
						3	Southwestern Oklahoma State	83
						2	Ouachita Baptist	67
	7	Ouachita Baptist	74
	2	Arkansas-Monticello	72

• All-Tournament Team

G – Darcie Dick, Southwestern Oklahoma State (Most Valuable Player)

C – Sumiya Darden, Southwestern Oklahoma State

G – Arielle Saunders, Harding

G – Cherilyn McMenamy, Harding

G – A'Laeshia Adams, Ouachita Baptist

G – Bailey Welch, Southeastern Oklahoma State

F – Ashley Hobbs, Southeastern Oklahoma State

G – Roselis Silva, Arkansas Tech

Baseball

Champion

Southern Arkansas

Southern Arkansas' Jason Dahl sent a towering fly ball over the right-center field fence in the bottom of the 11th inning to give his team the title with a 4–3 victory over Ouachita Baptist in the finals of the inaugural Great American Conference Championship Tournament. Dahl was also responsible for forcing the game into extra innings after hitting an RBI double down the right field line in the bottom of the ninth.

Ouachita Baptist defeated Southern Arkansas by the same score in the first game of the day. SAU rallied in the ninth inning to score one run on an RBI groundout from Rafael Thomas, but Southern Arkansas left two runners on base when Ryan Dardenne grounded out to the pitcher to force the deciding second game. ^[8]

Player of the Year Jonathan Finnegan, Arkansas Tech Pitcher of the Year Doug Shields, Southern Arkansas Freshman of the Year Ryan Dardenne, Southern Arkansas Coach of the Year Steve Browning, Southern Arkansas All-GAC 1st Team SP – Doug Shields, Southern Arkansas SP – James Baune, Southern Arkansas SP – Brandon Marris, Southeastern Oklahoma State SP – Brittain Diamond, Henderson State RP – Cameron Mann, Southeastern Oklahoma State C – Landon Sullins, Arkansas Tech 1B – Jonathan Finnegan, Arkansas Tech 2B – Andre Yates, Southwestern Oklahoma State 3B – Jeremy Soliday, Southwestern Oklahoma State 3B – Brady Capshaw, Southern Arkansas SS – Trey Buck, Southern Arkansas OF – Jason Dahl, Southern Arkansas OF – Rafael Thomas, Southern Arkansas OF – Blake Gentry, Southeastern Oklahoma State OF – Josh Salmon, Henderson State DH – Rick Hepworth, East Central UT – Adam Ussery, Henderson State

All-GAC 2nd Team SP – Brice Williams, Southeastern Oklahoma State SP – Aaron Luchterhand, Arkansas Tech SP – Cole Stephens, Southwestern Oklahoma State SP – Ryan Westover, Ouachita Baptist RP – Justin Thomas, Southern Arkansas C – Tom Ward, Ouachita Baptist 1B – David Allday, Southern Arkansas 2B – Taylor Eaves, Arkansas-Monticello 3B – Nate Wilder, Arkansas Tech SS – Kevin Phillips, Southeastern Oklahoma State OF – Keegan Ghidotti, Ouachita Baptist OF – Madison Beaird, Arkansas Tech OF – Peter Bako, Southeastern Oklahoma State OF – Danny Loya, Arkansas-Monticello DH – Thomas Biocic, Arkansas Tech UT – Chris Reese, Arkansas Tech All-GAC Honorable Mention SP – Lucas Waddell, Harding SP – Zak Anstine, Arkansas Tech SP – Nathan Eller, Henderson State SP – Shane Martin, Southwestern Oklahoma State RP – Zac Treece, Ouachita Baptist C – Ryan Dardenne, Southern Arkansas 1B – Brock Green, Ouachita Baptist 3B – Josh Chism, Arkansas-Monticello SS – Christian Gallegos, Arkansas-Monticello OF – Kyle Atkins, Harding OF – Conner Brackhahn, Henderson State OF – Gilbert Guardado, East Central OF – Ethan Gold, East Central DH – McCrae Jones, Ouachita Baptist UT – Parker Norris, Ouachita Baptist

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Southern Arkansas	17–7	.708	37–17	.685
Southeastern Oklahoma State	16–8	.667	34–17	.667
Southwestern Oklahoma State	14–10	.583	27–19	.587
Arkansas Tech	13–11	.542	26–27	.491
Ouachita Baptist	12–12	.500	30–26	.536
Henderson State	11–13	.458	23–27	.460
East Central	10–13	.435	26–23	.531
Arkansas-Monticello	7–16	.304	18–26	.409
Harding	7–17	.292	24–25	.490

Tournament

Friday-Monday, May 4–7
Host: David Allen Memorial Ballpark (Enid, OK)

	First round					Second round					Third round					Semifinals					Final
	1	Southern Arkansas	7
	6	Henderson State	6			Southern Arkansas		6
						Southwestern Oklahoma State		4
	2	Southeastern Oklahoma State	1								Southern Arkansas		15
	5	Ouachita Baptist	0								Southeastern Oklahoma State		11
						Southeastern Oklahoma State		7													Southern Arkansas		3	4A
						Arkansas Tech		4													Ouachita Baptist		4	3
	3	Southwestern Oklahoma State	4													Southeastern Oklahoma State		4
	4	Arkansas Tech	8A								Arkansas Tech		7			Ouachita Baptist		5
						Henderson State		3			Ouachita Baptist		13
						Ouachita Baptist		5

^A 11 Innings

• All-Tournament Team

P – Justin Thomas, Southern Arkansas (Most Valuable Player)

SS – Trey Buck, Southern Arkansas

OF – Jason Dahl, Southern Arkansas

OF – Gavin McCauley, Southern Arkansas

3B – Brady Capshaw, Southern Arkansas

C – Tom Ward, Ouachita Baptist

2B – Duncan Collins, Ouachita Baptist

P – Ryan Westover, Ouachita Baptist

OF – Keegan Ghidotti, Ouachita Baptist

P – Zac Treece, Ouachita Baptist

2B – Spencer Barnett, Southeastern Oklahoma State

P – Brandon Marris, Southeastern Oklahoma State

P – Levi Lewis, Southeastern Oklahoma State

2B – Cesar Abreu, Arkansas Tech

1B – Thomas Biocic, Arkansas Tech

Men's Golf

Champion

Team – Southwestern Oklahoma State

Individual – Matt Jennings, Henderson State

Southwestern Oklahoma State claimed the inaugural Great American Conference Men's Golf Championship after ending the final round five strokes ahead of eventual runner-up Arkansas Tech.

SWOSU turned in its highest team total of the three round tournament in the final round with a 306 to give the team a final score of 898. Arkansas Tech shot a 300 as a team in the final round to increase its final total to 903. ATU bettered its team score by one stroke in each round of the event, but it was not enough to overcome SWOSU's first and second round scores of 297 and 295.

The final round needed a sudden-victory playoff to decide the individual champion. HSU's Matt Jennings won the first playoff hole over ATU's Jack Garrett by two strokes to take first place. Garrett shot a 74 in the final 18 holes, while Jennings turned in a 77 to give the pair a regulation three round total of 219 each.

Jennings becomes HSU's first individual conference champion in Men's Golf since the institution joined the NCAA Division II ranks in 1994. ^[9]

Player of the Year Jack Garrett, Arkansas Tech Freshman of the Year Brandon Clark, Harding Coach of the Year Luke Calcatera, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 1st Team Jack Garrett, Arkansas Tech Matt Jennings, Henderson State Parker Hale, Arkansas Tech Travis Chrietzberg, Southern Arkansas Jeff Weisheit, East Central All-GAC 2nd Team Graham Rucker, Arkansas Tech Jared Black, Henderson State Jordan Hudson, Southwestern Oklahoma State Jeff Hunter, Southeastern Oklahoma State Robert Perry, Southeastern Oklahoma State All-GAC Honorable Mention Slade Hames, Arkansas Tech Luka Karaula, Southwestern Oklahoma State Brandon Clark, Harding Dakota Robbins, East Central Taylor Howie, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Championships

Sunday-Tuesday, April 15–17
Host: Hot Springs Country Club (Hot Springs, AR)

Team					Individual (Top Ten)
1	Southwestern Oklahoma State	297 – 295 – 306	898		1	Matt Jennings (HSU)‡	73 – 69 – 77	219
2	Arkansas Tech	302 – 301 – 300	903		2	Jack Garrett (ATU)	73 – 72 – 74	219
3	Henderson State	305 – 302 – 307	914		3	Wouter MyBurgh (SWOSU)	73 – 73 – 76	222
4	East Central	302 – 313 – 303	918		4	Jeff Weisheit (ECU)	70 – 77 – 77	224
5	Harding	308 – 304 – 307	919		5	Jordan Hudson (SWOSU)	74 – 76 – 75	225
6	Southeastern Oklahoma State	318 – 308 – 302	928		6	Brandon Clark (HU)	74 – 75 – 77	226
7	Southern Arkansas	314 – 316 – 311	941		7	Vincent Strong (SWOSU)	75 – 75 – 77	227
8	Arkansas-Monticello	320 – 316 – 327	963		7	Taylor Howie (SWOSU)	75 – 73 – 79	227
9	Ouachita Baptist	333 – 326 – 319	978		7	Bryeson Lance (ECU)	73 – 79 – 75	227
					10	Jason Purdy (ATU)	76 – 79 – 73	228
‡ Playoff Winner

• All-Tournament Team

Matt Jennings, Henderson State

Jack Garrett, Arkansas Tech

Wouter MyBurgh, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Jeff Weisheit, East Central

Jordan Hudson, Southwestern Oklahoma State

Brandon Clark, Harding

Women's Golf

Champion

Team – Harding

Individual – Rebecka Surtevall, Arkansas Tech

Harding held off a late push from eventual runner-up Arkansas Tech to capture the inaugural Great American Conference Women's Golf Championship by a final margin of 11 strokes.

Harding shot a 320 in the final round to give the team a three round total of 956. Arkansas Tech finished second with a three round total of 967 after posting the best team score of the event for a single round with a 315 in the final 18 holes.

ATU's final round was highlighted by individual champion Rebecka Surtevall, who shot a 75 to give her a three-day total of 232, one stroke ahead of individual runner-up Becca Godman from Harding, who entered the final 18 holes with a one stroke advantage. Surtevall's third round score of 75 was the top individual single round score of the event. ^[10]

Player of the Year Rebecka Surtevall, Arkansas Tech Freshman of the Year Rebecka Surtevall, Arkansas Tech Coach of the Year Amy White, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 1st Team Rebecka Surtevall, Arkansas Tech Emily Plyler, Harding Whitley Patterson, Southern Arkansas Brittany Marquez, Harding Elizabeth Sweetnam, Arkansas Tech All-GAC 2nd Team Haley Hise, Southwestern Oklahoma State Niki Possage, Arkansas Tech Rachel Harmon, Henderson State So-Yun Kim, Harding Julie Robinson, Henderson State All-GAC Honorable Mention Taylor Kline, Arkansas Tech Lindsey Lunceford, East Central

Championships

Sunday-Tuesday, April 15–17
Host: Hot Springs Country Club (Hot Springs, AR)

Team					Individual (Top Ten)
1	Harding	318 – 318 – 320	956		1	Rebecka Surtevall (ATU)	80 – 77 – 75	232
2	Arkansas Tech	330 – 322 – 315	967		2	Becca Godman (HU)	79 – 77 – 77	233
3	Southwestern Oklahoma State	341 – 325 – 325	991		3	Emily Plyler (HU)	79 – 83 – 77	239
4	Henderson State	328 – 332 – 339	999		3	Taylor Kline (ATU)	83 – 77 – 79	239
5	East Central	350 – 341 – 331	1022		5	Brittany Marquez (HU)	82 – 75 – 83	240
6	Ouachita Baptist	386 – 377 – 385	1148		6	Julie Robinson (HSU)	81 – 82 – 79	242
7	Arkansas-Monticello	406 – 421 – 406	1233		7	Soyun Kim (HU)	78 – 83 – 83	244
8	Southern Arkansas	427 – 425 – 409	1261		7	Elizabeth Sweetnam (ATU)	83 – 82 – 79	244
					7	Margaret Musser (SWOSU)	87 – 81 – 76	244
					10	Whitley Patterson (SAU)	77 – 85 – 84	246

• All-Tournament Team

Rebecka Surtevall, Arkansas Tech

Becca Godman, Harding

Emily Plyler, Harding

Taylor Kline, Arkansas Tech

Brittany Marquez, Harding

Softball

Champion

Arkansas-Monticello

No. 1 seed Arkansas-Monticello defeated No. 2 seed Southeastern Oklahoma State 9–2 to secure the inaugural Great American Conference Softball Championship Tournament title.

It is UAM's first overall conference tournament championship in its 17-year history. ^[11]

Player of the Year Emily Kennemer, East Central Pitcher of the Year Kayla Jackson, Arkansas-Monticello Newcomer of the Year Ali Manship, East Central Freshman of the Year Sara Matthews, Arkansas-Monticello Coach of the Year Alvy Early, Arkansas-Monticello

All-GAC 1st Team P – Kayla Jackson, Arkansas-Monticello P – Audra Rhudy, Southeastern Oklahoma State P – Katrina Johnson, Southwestern Oklahoma State C – Courtney Moore, Southeastern Oklahoma State 1B – Emily Kennemer, East Central 2B – Lindsey Lacy, Southeastern Oklahoma State 3B – Sara Matthews, Arkansas-Monticello SS – Katie Campbell, Southeastern Oklahoma State OF – Kristyn Shawver, Southwestern Oklahoma State OF – Ali Manship, East Central OF – Maggie Sands, Arkansas-Monticello DP/UT – Cami Correa, East Central All-GAC 2nd Team P – Katie Raines, Southwestern Oklahoma State P – Hanna Gill, Southern Arkansas P – Victoria Huie, Arkansas Tech C – Desiree Nordie, East Central 1B – Kayla Jackson, Arkansas-Monticello 2B – Ashley Ray, Henderson State 3B – Sam Vrska, Southeastern Oklahoma State SS – Johnna Smith, Southwestern Oklahoma State SS – Jennifer Hickman, Arkansas-Monticello OF – Amy Halter, Henderson State OF – Paige Priest, Southeastern Oklahoma State OF – Courtne St. Clair, Southeastern Oklahoma State DP/UT – Taylor Russell, Arkansas-Monticello All-GAC Honorable Mention P – Rayn House, Ouachita Baptist P – Kelsey Reding, Southeastern Oklahoma State P – Melissa Decker, Henderson State C – Brittany Eitel, Arkansas-Monticello C – Amber Klug, Henderson State 1B – Sarah Gipson, Henderson State 1B – Alexis Johns, Ouachita Baptist 2B – Chelsea Patterson, East Central 3B – Hayley Hudson, Arkansas Tech OF – Katey Gorsage, Henderson State OF – Megan Askew, Ouachita Baptist OF – Beth Johnson, Arkansas-Monticello DP/UT – Whitney Hamilton, Southeastern Oklahoma State

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Arkansas-Monticello	21–5	.808	40–14	.741
Southeastern Oklahoma State	22–6	.786	40–16	.714
East Central	15–11	.577	27–18	.600
Southwestern Oklahoma State	14–14	.500	32–20	.615
Henderson State	11–17	.393	20–30	.400
Southern Arkansas	11–17	.393	26–33	.441
Arkansas Tech	8–18	.308	16–31	.340
Ouachita Baptist	6–20	.231	18–31	.367

Tournament

Thursday-Saturday, April 26–28
Host: Bentonville Visitors and Convention Bureau (Bentonville, AR)

Upper round 1

Upper round 2

Upper final

Final

Arkansas-Monticello

9A

Ouachita Baptist

1

Arkansas-Monticello

1

Southwestern Oklahoma State

0

Southwestern Oklahoma State

5

Henderson State

1

Arkansas-Monticello

8A

Southern Arkansas

0

Southeastern Oklahoma State

8

Arkansas Tech

2

Southeastern Oklahoma State

0

Southern Arkansas

2C

East Central

0

Southern Arkansas

9B

Arkansas-Monticello

9

x

Southeastern Oklahoma State

2

x

Lower round 1

Lower round 2

Lower round 3

Lower final

Southeastern Oklahoma State

4

Ouachita Baptist

0

Henderson State

2

Southern Arkansas

1

Henderson State

12B

Southeastern Oklahoma State

1

Southeastern Oklahoma State

6

Southwestern Oklahoma State

0

Southwestern Oklahoma State

6

Arkansas Tech

2

Arkansas Tech

1

East Central

1

^A 5 Innings
^B 6 Innings
^C 9 Innings

• All-Tournament Team

P – Kayla Jackson, Arkansas-Monticello (Most Valuable Player)

SS – Jennifer Hickman, Arkansas-Monticello

OF – Maggie Sands, Arkansas-Monticello

OF – Katie Bowman, Arkansas-Monticello

2B – Summer Huddleston, Arkansas-Monticello

3B – Sam Vrska, Southeastern Oklahoma State

2B – Lindsey Lacy, Southeastern Oklahoma State

P – Audra Rhudy, Southeastern Oklahoma State

DP – Whitney Hamilton, Southeastern Oklahoma State

P – Hanna Gill, Southern Arkansas

SS – Taelor Wheeler, Southern Arkansas

P – Katrina Johnson, Southwestern Oklahoma State

OF – Katey Gorsage, Henderson State

C – Amber Klug, Henderson State

Men's Tennis

Champion

Ouachita Baptist

No. 1 seed and host Ouachita Baptist defeated No. 2 seed East Central by a final score of 5–1 on Saturday to capture the inaugural Great American Conference Men's Tennis Championship Tournament title.

After going 2–1 in doubles play, OBU's Helge Knuth, Marko Boskovic and Ramon Abaitua all recorded singles victories to give OBU the conference's tournament championship. The Tigers also captured the league's inaugural regular season title, going 3–0. ^[12]

Player of the Year Kittibodee Singnil, Harding Newcomer of the Year Luca Radulovic, Southeastern Oklahoma State Freshman of the Year Kittibodee Singnil, Harding Coach of the Year Craig Ward, Ouachita Baptist

All-GAC Team Kittibodee Singnil, Harding Helge Knuth, Ouachita Baptist Marko Boskovic, Ouachita Baptist Stefan Stein, East Central Luca Radulovic, Southeastern Oklahoma State Kenny Brasil, Ouachita Baptist Julian Caminos, East Central Adam Edwards, Harding

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Ouachita Baptist	3–0	1.000	16–7	.696
East Central	2–1	.667	8–7	.533
Southeastern Oklahoma State	1–2	.333	7–9	.438
Harding	0–3	.000	20–4	.833

Tournament

Friday-Saturday, April 20–22
Host: Ouachita Baptist University (Arkadelphia, AR)

	Semifinals					Finals
	1	Ouachita Baptist	5
	4	Harding	0
						1	Ouachita Baptist	5
						2	East Central	1
	2	East Central	5
	3	Southeastern Oklahoma State	1

Women's Tennis

Champion

Arkansas Tech

No. 1 seed Arkansas Tech followed its regular season championship by winning the inaugural Great American Conference Women's Tennis Championship Tournament with a 5–0 win over No. 3 seed East Central.

The Golden Suns' 3–0 performance in doubles play was highlighted by an 8–0 win for Maria Aleman and Rachel Stevens over ECU's Bernardita Muscillo and Kristen Clubb. In singles play, ATU's Nina Greenway picked up a 6–1, 6–0 victory over Kaitlin Threat in the sixth position, while Rachel Stevens picked up a default win over Auriele Rodriguez in the second set due to injury. ^[13]

Player of the Year Mariel Alvarez, Arkansas Tech Newcomer of the Year Maria Moreno, Harding Freshman of the Year Aida Castany, Arkansas Tech Coach of the Year Abby Davis, Arkansas Tech

All-GAC 1st Team Mariel Alvarez, Arkansas Tech Ling Chan, Harding Marta Valles, East Central Akanesi Fa, Arkansas Tech Benyapa Phumtip, Harding Bernardita Muscillo, East Central Maria Aleman, Arkansas Tech Kourtney Chumbley, Ouachita Baptist All-GAC 2nd Team Rachel Stevens, Arkansas Tech Fabiola Juarez, Southeastern Oklahoma State Sabina Mardarenko, Southeastern Oklahoma State Chelsea Hunt, Harding Eli Dignard, East Central Kristen Clubb, East Central Kristine Bodine, Ouachita Baptist

Standings

Team	Conference		Overall
Arkansas Tech	6–0	1.000	17–5	.773
Harding	5–1	.833	20–8	.714
East Central	4–2	.667	6–12	.333
Southeastern Oklahoma State	3–3	.500	8–9	.471
Ouachita Baptist	2–4	.333	4–14	.222
Henderson State	1–5	.167	2–14	.125
Southern Arkansas	0–6	.000	1–13	.071

Tournament

Friday-Saturday, April 20–22
Host: Ouachita Baptist University (Arkadelphia, AR)

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
	3	East Central	5
	6	Henderson State	0
						3	East Central	5
						2	Harding	2
	2	Harding	5
	7	Southern Arkansas	0
											3	East Central	0
											1	Arkansas Tech	5
	4	Southeastern Oklahoma State	5
	5	Ouachita Baptist	2
						4	Southeastern Oklahoma State	0
						1	Arkansas Tech	5

References

1. "East Central captures inaugural GAC Men's Cross Country title".
2. "Harding captures inaugural GAC Women's Cross Country title".
3. "Seventy-five honored in inaugural ALL-GAC Football release".
4. "East Central wins inaugural Women's Soccer championship".
5. "Arkansas Tech downs Harding in five set thriller to capture inaugural GAC Volleyball championship".
6. "ATU captures inaugural GAC Men's Basketball title".
7. "SWOSU wins first ever GAC Women's Basketball title".
8. "Dahl powers SAU to GAC Tournament title".
9. "SWOSU claims inaugural GAC Men's Golf championship".
10. "Harding holds on to capture inaugural Women's Golf title".
11. "UAM secures inaugural GAC Softball Tournament title".
12. "OBU captures inaugural GAC Men's Tennis Tournament title".
13. "ATU captures inaugural GAC Women's Tennis Tournament title".

External links

• Official website