MELBOURNE, Fla. – Lynn University golfer Toto Gana has been voted the 2018-19 Sunshine State Conference Male Athlete of the Year. Gana guided the Fighting Knights to the 2019 NCAA Division II national title and finished tied for fourth in stroke play at the NCAA finals.
Voting for the award is conducted among Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, Athletic Communication Directors, and Faculty Athletic Representatives from each of the 11 SSC member institutions.
The Santiago, Chile native was the engine that powered Lynn men's golf all season long. The 2018-19 Fighting Knights tallied the second-lowest scoring average in team history (286.97) and won five tournaments, including the 2019 South/Southeast Regional Championship and 2019 National Championship. Gana's postseason performances included a Top-10 finish in the regional championship, Top-5 in stroke play at the national championship, and winning two of a possible three points for Lynn in medal match play.
Gana recorded the fourth-lowest stroke average in Lynn program history (71.33) on his way to eight Top-10 finishes this season. The junior also grabbed his first collegiate victory by shooting a career-best 205 (8-under) at the 54-hole NCAA Division II Preview in October. Gana finished the season ranked No. 150 amongst all collegiate golfers, No. 133 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), and No. 5 in NCAA Division II according to GolfStat.
In addition to his First Team All-SSC accolades, Gana was named First Team All-South Region and First Team All-American by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA). He also earned All-Tournament team honors from the SSC and NCAA with Top-5 finishes in both championships.
Gana, an international business major, is the fourth Lynn student-athlete to be honored as SSC Male Athlete of the Year
1 and first since 2008-09. He is also the ninth golfer to win Male Athlete of the Year
2 since the award was established in 1987-88.
Complete Listing:
SSC Scholar-Athletes of the Year
1Previous Lynn winners: Dan Wright (Baseball - 2008-09), Nicolas Boisvert (Baseball - 2006-07), Ross Lumsden (2003-04)
2John Curley (FSC - 1995-96), Jeff Klauk (FSC - 1999-00), Steve Sokol (FSC - 2000-01), Rob Oppenheim (Rollins - 2001-02), Matt Stauch (FSC - 2009-10), Tim Crouch (FSC - 2012-13, 2013-14), John Coultas (FSC - 2015-16), John VanDerLaan (FSC - 2017-18)