EDISON, NJ (May 6, 2026) – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), today announced the 2026 Men’s Golf Major Awards winners, as voted on by the league’s 11 head coaches.
2026 MAAC Men’s Golf Champions, Iona University, captured two of the three major awards to lead the conference.
Fairfield University sophomore, Rasmus Ditzinger, was unanimously voted as the 2026 MAAC Player of the Year. Last week at the 2026 MAAC Championship, Ditzinger was the top individual finishers, winning the MAAC title and becoming a McLeod Trophy award recipient. He carded a 212 (-4) at the three round, 54-hole championship, helping lead the Stags to a fourth place team finish. As the individual MAAC Champion, Ditzinger earned an automatic berth to a 2026 NCAA Regional. The lone unanimous pick for the All-MAAC First Team, he finished in the individual top three in eight of 10 tournaments this season and won a MAAC-leading three Golfer of the Week awards and one Golfer of the Month honor in the fall season.
Iona freshman, Jennings Oelke, was chosen as the 2026 MAAC Rookie of the Year. Oelke shot a 217 (+1) at the MAAC Championship last week, tying for sixth place and earning a spot on the MAAC All-Championship Team. He was the only freshman to earn a spot on the team. During the 2026 campaign, Oelke had two top 10 finishes and finished in the top 15 four times. Additionally, he was the only freshman to secure a spot on an All-MAAC Team at the conclusion of the regular season, making the Second Team, and he won three MAAC Rookie of the Week honors as well.
Iona Director of Men's & Women's Golf, Sean Burke was named as MAAC Coach of the Year by his peers for the fourth time in his career, previously winning the awards in 2018, 2019, and 2022. The Gaels won the 2026 MAAC Men’s Golf Championship last week, their first title in five years and eighth in program history. Iona posted a 54-hole team score of 868, 4-over par, to edge second-place Sacred Heart by four strokes. Under Burke, Iona has won four MAAC titles, claiming championships in 2018, 2019, and 2021. Burke’s Gaels had a conference-leading three student-athletes land on the MAAC All-Championship Team – top-10 finisher at MAAC Championship – and a league-high three players placed on an All-MAAC Team.
| 2026 MAAC Men's Golf Major Awards |
| Award |
Name |
School |
| Player of the Year |
Rasmus Ditzinger* |
Fairfield |
| Rookie of the Year |
Jennings Oelke |
Iona |
| Coach of the Year |
Sean Burke |
Iona |
*Denotes unanimous selection
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 13 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 45th year of competition during the 2025-26 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan University, Marist University, Merrimack College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Sacred Heart University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena University.
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