ROCK HILL, S.C. – EMU Disc Golf reached the culmination of their 2024-25 season, traveling to compete in the 2025 College Disc Golf Nationals on April 2-5, hosted by Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C.
 
It turned out to be a banner week for the Royals. Jesse Longenecker, a first-year from Lancaster, Pa., shined on the national stage, winning the national championship in the D1 Singles Division. It was the second win of Longenecker's season, capping off a first-year campaign in which he placed in the top six in every singles competition for EMU.
 
The Royals also posted exceptional team performances, with all three squads taking a step up from their placements at the 2024 College Disc Golf Nationals.
 
The men's "A" team of Theo Andreas, Beckham Jantzi, Longenecker, and Eli Stoll finished in a tie for 18th in the top D1 level of competition, moving up from their placement of 45th at the DII level a season ago. The men's "B" squad, consisting of Willem Hedrick, Eli Miller, Kai Peachey-Stoner, and Yuji Wenger, wound up in a tie for 57th in DII. Finally, the women's duo of Miriam Rhodes and Sadie Oesch came home 11th in a score of 14 over par, 11 spots better than the 22nd-place showing for the women's "A" squad in 2024.
 
Highlights

• Men's "A" Team (Theo Andreas, Beckham Jantzi, Jesse Longenecker, Eli Stoll)
  • D1 Singles
    • In the Wednesday 18-hole singles round at Winthrop Lakefront, Longenecker quickly established himself as the golfer to beat, birding five of his first six holes. Though he cooled off a bit in the middle of the round, Longenecker finished strong by going four under par on the final three holes, culminating with an eagle on the challenging par 5 18th hole. That gave Longenecker a score of nine under par 52 and a three-shot lead going to the final nine holes.
    • Although EMU's other three "A" team players did not make the final round cut, they nonetheless acquitted themselves well against a deep field of disc golfers at the D1 level. Jantzi scored a six over par 67 to tie for 103rd, Andreas turned in a scorecard of 10 over par 71, and Stoll finished up with a round of 15 over par 75.
    • The singles championship came down to a nine-hole final round on Thursday on the final nine holes of the Winthrop Lake course. Longenecker started a little shaky with a bogey on his first hole, but he got that stroke right back with a birdie on the third. At one point, Longenecker was tied with Kalan Schat of Redeemer University. Longenecker stepped up with a crucial birdie on the 16th hole, and his round of even par 31 was more than enough to clinch the national championship.
  • D1 Team
    • The "A" team entered the first team round with a score of six over par, an average of the quartet's scores from the opening singles round. They made up a lot of ground with a score four under par 57 on the 18-hole Winthrop Lakefront course, moving up to a tie for 34th.
    • Andreas, Jantzi, Longenecker, and Stoll made a big move up the leader board in the second team round on Friday, shooting a 10 under par 48 on the Canaan Gold course. That tied for the best round of the day in the D1 Team competition, and moved the EMU "A" team up to a tie for 19th.
    • The Royals "A" squad ended the weekend on a high note with a six under par 52 at Canaan Gold to finish among the top 20 at the D1 level.
• Men's "B" Team (Willem Hedrick, Eli Miller, Kai Peachey-Stoner, Yuji Wenger)
  • D2 Singles
    • Wenger led the Royals "B" team in singles competition, turning in a scorecard of nine over par 67. Hedrick shot a 10 over par 68, followed by Peachey-Stoner at 11 over par 69 and Miller with a 14 over par 72.
  • D2 Team
    • The "B" squad started strong in their Wednesday team round, teaming up for an 8 under par 51 that included eight birdies across the 18 holes. The quartet lost some ground in the singles average and second team round, but the Royals roared in their final round with another eight under par day.
• Women's Team (Sadie Oesch, Miriam Rhodes)
  • Singles
    • Competing on the Winthrop Meadows course, Rhodes put forth a great effort in the singles round, shooting a seven over par 66 to finish tied for 17th. Rhodes was just one stroke away from making the cut for the final nine holes of singles competition. Oesch completed the 18-hole course in a score of 15 over par 74.
  • Team
    • Oesch and Rhodes entered the team rounds at 11 over par based on the average of their singles scores. The duo collaborated for a solid two over par 62 in their first team round. The women's second team round was their best of the weekend, shooting a one under par 58 on the Winthrop Meadows course. Oesch and Rhodes wrapped up the weekend with a two over par 62 to reach their final score of 14 over par.

 
What's Next
This concludes a memorable and successful 2024-25 campaign for EMU Disc Golf. The Royals will bring back plenty of experience in 2025-26, with Oesch being the lone senior in this year's roster.