Alabama's Mic Potter Named National Golf Coach of the Year

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Just hours after securing Alabama's first NCAA Women's Golf National Championship, the National Golf Coaches Association handed out its annual awards at a post-round banquet in Franklin, Tenn., late Friday evening.

Crimson Tide head coach Mic Potter won the Eaton Golf Pride NGCA National Coach of the Year as well as East Region Coach of the Year. Potter, a NGCA Hall of Famer, just completed his seventh year at Alabama and his 29th in collegiate golf with his first National Championship.

Potter has taken 22 teams to the NCAA Championships while recording nine top-10 finishes. He has coached 29 NGCA All-Americans and 54 All-Conference selections.

NCAA runner-up Brooke Pancake and junior Jennifer Kirby were selected as NGCA Division-I First-Team All-Americans while sophomore Stephanie Meadow was a second-team choice.

Pancake, a native of Chattanooga, Tenn., saw her Alabama career cumulate in the school's first National Championship in women's golf. Her four-foot par putt on the 18th hole secured the one-stroke victory for the Crimson Tide. She is a three-time All-America, twice garnering first team honors. She finished with a 73.08 career scoring average and led the team in 2011-12 with a 72.52 stroke average.

Kirby, who was also named to the NGCA All-East Region team, garnered first-team All-America honors, her second All-America recognition. Kirby finished tied for 14th at the 2012 NCAA Championship and won her first career tournament title at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic. The native of Paris, Ontario, Canada, posted a 72.61 scoring average as a junior with five top-10 finishes.

Meadow, who hails from Jordanstown, Northern Ireland, becomes a two-time All-American with her second-team selection. She was a first-team pick in 2011 as a true freshman. Meadow finished the 2011-12 season with a 72.94 scoring average and two tournament victories to eclipse the Alabama career record for wins with five.

Alabama has now won 13 All-America honors by six different players in Potter's seventh-year tenure with the Crimson Tide. That list includes five first-team selections, two second-team picks and six honorable mention choices.

Both Pancake and Meadow will travel to Narin, Scotland, for the 2012 Curtis Cup in June. Pancake will play for the United States team while Meadow will compete for the Great Britain and Ireland team.