ATLANTA, G.A. – Senior Anthony Maccaglia of the Oglethorpe men’s golf team was named the SAA Man of the Year May 19th, 2015, marking the first time that a Stormy Petrel student-athlete has won either the SAA Man or Woman of the Year award in the three-year history of the conference. The awards, presented by Summit Management Corporation, are the highest honors the league bestows and are given to the male and female senior class nominees who best exemplify traits of leadership, character, and athletic and academic success as selected by a committee consisting of representatives from Summit Management and the SAA.
Maccaglia, who hails from Tampa, F.L., is the most decorated student-athlete in the young history of the SAA. He has led the Petrels to four consecutive trips to the NCAA Division III Championship, including winning an individual and team national title in his freshman season. In all, he has garnered four consecutive selections to the Division III PING First Team All-American squad and has won 13 individual titles and 11 tournament medals in his career while recording an astounding 27 Top 5 finishes.
A psychology major, Maccaglia has maintained a 3.68 GPA over the course of his four years at Oglethorpe. He was named a Division III Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar May 12th, 2015, by the Golf Coaches Association of America, as well as a finalist for the Division III Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award and a Division III PING All-Southeast Region honoree. He also earned a spot on the Capital One Academic All-District Men’s At-Large Team, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, for the second consecutive year. That automatically nominates him for Academic All-America consideration by the same organization.
He finished the season as the top-ranked Division III golfer in the nation according to Golfstat and earned SAA Men’s Golfer of the Year honors for the second consecutive season. He finished tied for second at the NCAA Division III Championship last week, marking the second time in his career he has been either the national medalist or the national runner-up. He was a finalist for the Byron Nelson Award this season, which considers an entire collegiate academic and golf career as well as a nominee’s character and integrity while in college and is awarded regardless of division.
In the community, Maccaglia has served as a role model for four years, mentoring students with the First Tee Academy. Additionally, he has dedicated four years working with the Drew Charter School in Atlanta in physical education.
“This is another feather in the cap for Anthony,” said Head Coach Jim Owen. “It’s extremely gratifying that the Southern Athletic Association as a whole is recognizing the contributions this young man made on the course, in the classroom, and in the community. He has been decorated with every honor imaginable during his four-year career, but a few honors resonate above all others, and this is one of them.”
The criteria for SAA Man and Woman of the Year nominees include that they must be a senior with no eligibility remaining, they must have been named All-SAA First Team in the sport in which they participated during their athletic careers, and they must have qualified for the SAA Academic Honor Roll during their tenure as a student-athlete. Additionally, SAA Man and Woman of the Year candidates are expected to be involved in their local community in some meaningful way.