Three earn All-NEC nods, Blanchard named NEC Coach of the Year

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Highlighted by the first Northeast Conference Coach of the Year honor for sixth-year head coach Charlie Blanchard, the NEC Champion Bryant University golf team saw three named all-conference selections for their play throughout the 2016-17 season.

The senior duo of Ryan Tombs (Bedford, N.H.) and McKinley Slade (Saunderstown, R.I.) earned All-NEC First Team accolades for the second-straight season, while classmate John Roberts (West Hartford, Conn.) earned the first all-league selection of his career with an All-NEC Second Team nod.

Blanchard led the Bulldogs to their second Northeast Conference title in 2017, as the Black and Gold topped the league field by 26 strokes at the late April Championship. With Blanchard at the helm, Bryant earned team victories in two tournaments and two head-to-head matchups while finishing in the top-five in eight of the team's 11 events entering NCAA Regionals action. The team finished outside the top-10 just once. This season, Blanchard saw his golfers take medalist honors at four tournaments, earn 13 top-5 finishes and take home 30 top-25 placings.

Tombs earns his third All-NEC First Team nod in 2017 after finishing second at the NEC Championships for the fourth-straight year. The senior has led the Bulldogs all season long and entered NCAA action with a team-best 72.8 stroke average. Appearing in all 11 events, Tombs earned two individual titles, finishing atop the leaderboard at the season-opening Ryan Lee Memorial Tournament Sept. 10-11 and the regular-season-ending Rhode Island Invitational April 17-18. In 2017, the senior earned five top-3 finishes and seven top-10 placings and was named the NEC Golfer of the Month twice and NEC Golfer of the Week once.

Finishing fourth at the NEC Championships, Slade returns to the all-league first team after posting six top-25 finishes in 2016-17. With a season average of 75.0, the senior helped lead the Bulldogs in all 11 events, finishing tied for second at the Ryan Lee Memorial Tournament. The Rhode Island native also saw a fifth-place finish at the Coca-Cola Lehigh Valley Invitational April 2-3.

Roberts posted a strong senior season in 2016-17, also appearing in all 11 events while garnering two top-10 finishes. Roberts finished sixth at the NEC Championships, carding a 224 to record his highest finish in three-career championship appearances. The senior finished the year with a 75.4 stroke average and four top-25 finishes.