HADLEY, Mass. – The 2026 NESCAC Men's Golf Awards, as voted on by the league's coaches, were announced. Williams first-year Nick Smith was voted as the NESCAC Golfer of the Year and the NESCAC Rookie of the Year, marking the sixth time in conference history and the first time since the 2022-23 season that the same player has been named NESCAC Golfer and Rookie of the Year in the same season. Williams head coach Josh Hillman was selected as the NESCAC Coach of the Year by his peers.
Smith was the medalist at the NESCAC Men's Golf Championship, helping the Ephs win their 14th NESCAC title in program history and first since 2017. Smith, who is the fifth Eph to garner the NESCAC Player of the Year honor and the first since the 2014-15 season, was three strokes better than the field at the conference championship with a three-day total of 213 (71-70-72). Smith, who owns a 74.2 scoring average this season, also won the Williams Fall Invitational and was ninth at the Skidmore Fall Invitational. Smith, who also earned All-NESCAC First Team honors, and the Ephs earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship by virtue of winning the NESCAC title.
Hillman earns the NESCAC Coach of the Year honor for the second time in his career (2016-17). In his 14th season at the helm of the Ephs, Hillman guided Williams to its third NESCAC title under his leadership (2013, 2017) and the program's 14th overall. The Ephs' NCAA appearance is the 13th in program history and the first since 2017.
2026 NESCAC Men's Golf Awards
Golfer of the Year: Nick Smith, Williams
Rookie of the Year: Nick Smith, Williams
Coach of the Year: Josh Hillman, Williams
| All-NESCAC First Team |
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
Previous Honors |
| Ramon Aroca Gonzalez |
Hamilton |
Sr. |
Madrid, Spain |
2025 GOY, 2025 1st Team, 2024 1st Team, 2023 GOY, 2023 ROY, 2023 1st Team |
| Jan Ebbinge |
Amherst |
So. |
Queenstown, New Zealand |
2025 1st Team |
| Jack Estrella |
Williams |
So. |
Brookville, N.Y. |
2025 2nd Team |
| Holden Kittelberger |
Tufts |
Sr. |
Katy, Texas |
2025 2nd Team |
| Henry Mariscal |
Bowdoin |
So. |
Pacific Palisades, Calif. |
|
| Nick Smith |
Williams |
Fy. |
Rye, N.Y. |
|
| Andre Zhang |
Amherst |
So. |
Davis, Calif. |
2025 1st Team |
| Thomas Zhang |
Amherst |
Fy. |
Vancouver, British Columbia |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| All-NESCAC Second Team |
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
Previous Honors |
| Jake Hendelman |
Hamilton |
So. |
Harrison, N.Y. |
|
| Spencer Korona |
Trinity |
Sr. |
Enfield, Conn. |
|
| Parker Kroll |
Trinity |
Fy. |
Providence, R.I. |
|
| Alex Moller |
Williams |
Jr. |
New York, N.Y. |
2025 2nd Team |
| Charlie Mullin |
Trinity |
So. |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
2025 ROY, 2025 2nd Team |
| JP Noone |
Tufts |
Jr. |
Weston, Mass. |
2025 1st Team |
| Brendan Roy |
Tufts |
Jr. |
Sterling, Mass. |
|
| Charlie Schulman |
Middlebury |
Sr. |
Bethesda, Md. |
|
