St. Mary’s senior Kongpop Kaikaew was named the 2026 Lone Star Conference Men’s Golf Player of the Year to lead the annual postseason men’s golf awards announced by league officials on Sunday (April 19) at the championship banquet at Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club in Rockwall, Texas.
Kaikaew, who is from Rayong, Thailand, leads the conference with a 70.1 adjusted scoring average. He won the DBU Classic (7-under-par) and Skip Wagnon Invitational (13-under-par). Kaikaew also had four other top-10 finishes. He is the No. 7-ranked golfer in all of NCAA Division II and is tops in the South Central Region.
Kaikaew topped the six-golfer All-Conference First Team that also included teammate Baptiste Touchard; Sam Jenkins of DBU; Seth Bearden of Midwestern State; Will Tate of UT Permian Basin; and Luis Palomo of West Texas A&M.
UT Permian Basin junior Nizar Bourehim took Newcomer of the Year honors after a 72.9 adjusted scoring average and a win at the The Hrnciar (10-under-par).
UT Tyler’s Blake Harwell was tabbed Freshman of the Year after posting an adjusted scoring average of 72.3 and three top-15 finishes.
Bourehim was a Second Team All-Conference selection, while Harwell earned honorable mention.
Connor McCarthy of St. Mary’s and Axel Ochoa of West Texas A&M shared Coach of the Year honors after each posting five top-3 finishes and having their squads ranked in the top 20 in the nation. McCarthy wins the LSC honor for the second straight year, while Ochoa gets the nod for the first time.
In total, 15 players earned recognition. The awards are voted upon by the league coaches.
2026 LSC MEN’S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
Player of the Year: Kongpop Kaikaew, St. Mary’s
Newcomer of the Year: Nizar Bourehim, UT Permian Basin
Freshman of the Year: Blake Harwell, UT Tyler
Co-Coaches of the Year: Connor McCarthy, St. Mary’s; Axel Ochoa, West Texas A&M
[Each group sorted alphabetically by team]
FIRST TEAM
Player Team Year Hometown
Sam Jenkins DBU Sr. Rockwall, Texas
Seth Bearden Midwestern State Gr. Crowell, Texas
Kongpop Kaikaew St. Mary’s Sr. Rayong, Thailand
Baptiste Touchard St. Mary’s Sr. Saint Agathon, France
Will Tate UT Permian Basin Sr. Reading, England, United Kingdom
Luis Palomo West Texas A&M Sr. Barcelona, Spain
SECOND TEAM
Player Team Year Hometown
Rory Gorman Cameron Sr. Brisbane, Australia
Guillaume Paquette St. Mary’s So. Quebec, Canada
Juan Monckeberg Texas A&M International Sr. Santiago, Chile
Nizar Bourehim UT Permian Basin Jr. Rabat, Morocco
Ioan Rowe UT Permian Basin Jr. Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom
Santiago Caride West Texas A&M Sr. Bariloche, Argentina
HONORABLE MENTION
Player Team Year Hometown
Daniel Ferguson DBU Fr. Duncanville, Texas
Tyler Durden UT Dallas Sr. Austin, Texas
Blake Harwell UT Tyler Fr. League City, Texas