RINDGE, N.H. (April 30, 2018) – For the first time in Franklin Pierce University athletics history, both golf programs have qualified for the 2018 NCAA Division II Tournament Atlantic/East Regionals. The Raven men will make their second straight appearance in the Regionals while the women's squad earned the Northeast-10 Conference's first-ever automatic bid after capturing the conference title back in September.

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR THE MEN'S REGIONALS SELECTIONS | CLICK HERE FOR THE WOMEN

Franklin Pierce University Men's Golf

The crimson and grey head back to the Glade Springs Resort located in Daniels, W.Va., as the eighth seed in the East Region. Franklin Pierce will play a practice round on Sunday, May 6 before competing in the three day Regional from Monday, May 7 to Wednesday, May 9. Last year, the Ravens finished in 16th place with sophomore Sam Myers (Colchester, Vt.) placing seventh individually at 223 (+7). Franklin Pierce joins fellow conference members Southern New Hampshire University, Le Moyne College, and conference champion Bentley University at the regional.

"Our men's team had a great year, and I am so proud and happy for them to qualify for the second straight NCAA East Regional," said head coach Tyler Bishop. "They have worked hard on their games all year round, and played consistent, quality golf through both the fall and spring seasons."

The top three teams and the top two individuals not with a team from each regional (regardless of region) will advance to the NCAA Championship from May 21-25 at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at the Shoals, Fighting Joe Course in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The remaining eight team berths will be allocated based on the regions represented in the prior year's head-to-head medal play portion of the championships, with the maximum number of teams from a given region capped at seven.

"We are excited about heading down to the Glade Springs Resorts," added Bishop. "Four out of five of our players were on this course with us last year, so we have a lot of experience heading into this tournament. We are poised to play three solid rounds of golf and position ourselves for a chance to qualify for the National Championships."

This season, the Ravens recorded four top-three finishes in tournaments, including a first place 588 (+20) showing at the Saint Rose Fall Shootout and second place at the 83rd Annual NEIGA Division II Championship (605 (+29). Freshman Dylan Plis (Camillus, N.Y.) collected All-New England Honors by finishing in second with a 144 (E) scorecard.

Franklin Pierce University Women's Golf

Meanwhile, on the women's side of things, the Ravens are bound for the Katke Golf Course in Big Rapids, Mich., where they will compete on May 7-9, as the 12th seed in the East Super Regional. For the women's golf team, the trip will mark the first full-team appearance in the NCAA Championship in program history. A year ago, then-junior Camden Morrison (Millis, Mass.) represented the Ravens as an individual in the East Super Regional, where she finished second at 217 (+1) to advance to the NCAA National Finals.

"We started this program just four short years ago, and to qualify for the NCAA Championship in our fourth year is an amazing achievement for Franklin Pierce women's golf," said Bishop. "We are led by two incredible, talented and hard-working seniors in Camden Morrison and Taylor Schmidt, who started the program with me as freshmen."

The top three teams and the top two individuals not with a team from each super regional will advance to the championships, which will be held from May 16-19 at the Bay Oaks Country Club in Houston.

"I am beyond proud of our young ladies and what they have accomplished," continued Bishop. "We have won six out of our nine tournaments this year, and we are going to carry that momentum to Michigan to try to qualify for the National Championships."

The Ravens made sure there was no drama as to whether or not they would be selected to the NCAA Championship all the way back in September, when they captured the Northeast-10 Championship and earned the league's first-ever automatic bid into the NCAA field. Franklin Pierce posted a two-round score of 618 (+42) and were led by a pair of top-five finishes, from Morrison in second at 143 (-1) and Sarah Daley (Beverly, Mass.) in fifth at 158 (+14).

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce golf apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store). You can also follow the golf programs on Twitter (https://twitter.com/FPU_GOLF).