Jim Knous took second place at the NCAA Championships in Simpsonville, Ky.

�In a year of firsts in the athletics department, the Mines golf team achieved one of the greatest seasons in program history, claiming six team titles and earning the No. 1 ranking in the Central Region. The Orediggers also claimed the program’s first conference title since the 1968 season, after topping the 10-team field by 15 strokes at the April RMAC Spring Championship in Arizona.

All five Mines golfers ranked among the top 25 individuals, including Jim Knous, who was named 2012 RMAC Player of the Year. Other honors went to sophomore Michael Lee (Second Team All-RMAC), senior Cory Bacon and sophomore Kyle Grassel (Third Team All-RMAC), and head coach Tyler Kimble, who was named the RMAC Coach of the Year, after leading his team to wins in three of the four RMAC events.

The Orediggers finished third at the NCAA Division II West/Central Super Regional in Arizona and made their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Championships in Kentucky, where the team tied for 11th overall and Knous finished second, narrowly missing an individual national championship with a bogey on the 18th hole of the final playoff round.