JU women’s golf coach leaving program

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Jacksonville University (JU) Senior Vice President/Athletic Director Alex Ricker-Gilbert recently announced that women’s golf head coach and Nocatee resident Jennifer Borocz has decided to leave the program. 

“We are extremely grateful for the positive impact that coach Borocz has had on our women’s golf program, athletic department and university,” Ricker-Gilbert said in a press release distributed by JU. “This is a bittersweet announcement. I can speak for the entire department when I say that we are sad to see someone of Jennifer’s caliber move on, but we are happy that she will remain in Northeast Florida with the opportunity to spend more time with her wonderful family.

According to the press release, Borocz is hoping to spend more time enjoying family life after building the women’s golf program up since taking over as head coach prior to the 2012-13 season. She became the first dedicated women’s coach in the program’s history and during her tenure, the Dolphins have seen a number of school records fall, including the lowest team scoring average in a season, the top-10 lowest team tournament rounds, the top-six lowest two round scores and the top-15 lowest three-round totals. 

JU won three tournament titles, including two in the 2017-18 season, tied for the most in a single season and was the best in individual scoring categories in the program’s history on a year-in-year-out basis.

Under Borocz’s tutelage, Jessica Welch became the first women’s golfer at JU to qualify for NCAA postseason play, as well as the first and only ASUN Golfer of the Year and ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year in the program’s history. The team has also achieved its best conference tournament finishes since the program was formed in 1985, four years running, and achieved the first-ever top-100 Golfstat finish in program history in 2017-18.

“I would like to thank President Cost and Alex Ricker-Gilbert for their support during my time at Jacksonville University,” Borocz said. “Most importantly, I would like to thank the players that I’ve been so fortunate to coach. Their hard work and dedication brought the program to new heights, both on and off the course.  

“I can’t thank them enough for their tireless dedication to JU Women’s Golf. This was an extremely difficult decision, but I feel we’ve laid a solid foundation for the program and I am confident it will be successful well into the future. JU has meant so much to my family and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunities JU provided us.”

The team has also excelled in the classroom, earning the WGCA All-Scholar Team GPA Award after posting the highest team GPA in the country (3.924) in 2016-17, the only team to have over a 3.9. Seven members were honored individually as well by the WGCA, with Megan Collins, Michelle Forsland, Amanda Detmer, Louise Persson, Maria Brunzell, Maria Juliana Fueyo and Welch all receiving recognition for their academic achievements. Most recently, this team earned the Outstanding Team GPA Award at the JAXPYS for the fourth consecutive year, awarded to the team that recorded the highest GPA among the 20 sports under the Dolphin banner. Previously, the team received the Dolphin C.U.R.E Award, presented to the team with the most service work completed, in 2017, and the D.B. Milne Sportsmanship Award in 2018.

Borocz will remain an advocate for the program and as an ambassador for women’s golf in Northeast Florida. She has already provided some input as the department begins its search for a new leader of the program and will continue to support the program throughout the hiring process.