Penfield, N.Y. -- Eddie Coffren V of the University of Lynchburg men's golf team earned the 2025 NCAA Division III Arnold Palmer National Individual Champion Award on Friday afternoon at the NCAA DIII National Championship at Midvale Country Club. As a team, the men's golf squad placed seventh overall, the best finish in the NCAA Championship for the program since 1980.

Coffren was at the top of the leaderboard on each day of the competition and never dropped below second place throughout the entire event. In the final round, the Owings, Md. product shot a 70 with four birdies along the way to go two under par for the day, effectively holding off Bethel's Will Karkoc by one stroke and Emory's Kevin Mu by two. The senior becomes the first individual national champion in program history and the fourth in ODAC men's golf history.

After day one, Coffren was knotted with Mu for first place at four under par after shooting a 68 at Cobblestone Creek Country Club. Throughout the first round, he tallied an impressive seven birdies. Coffren followed up with a 73 in round two at Midvale Country Club, where the remainder of the tournament would be played. After two rounds, he sat at second overall with an composite score of -3, helping his squad make the cut.

The senior had another stellar performance in round three, staying under 70 strokes yet again. He finished the third round with four birdies and just one bogie to shoot a 69, three under par. That granted him sole control of first place with an overall score of -6 heading into the final round. Coffren finished out the final 18 holes at two under par using four birdies to secure the individual title. 

In total, Eddie finished with an incredible 18 birdies to secure his first tournament win of the season. Additionally, following the conclusion of the championship, Coffren was named a PING First Team All-American, his second All-American honor of his collegiate career and first on the First Team. 

As a squad, the Hornets secured their seventh-place finish with an astounding final round, going even on the day. Finishing the final round even with par allowed Lynchburg to climb three spots to seal seventh place.

Visit Lynchburg athletics' home online, LynchburgSports.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news on all Hornets sports and coverage from the Lynchburg Hornets Sports Network.

Sign up here to receive Lynchburg Sports news in your email inbox.

Give Lynchburg Athletics a like on Facebook, and follow Lynchburg Athletics on Instagram and X.