Amherst College Men's Golf

Arena '83. The Purple & White won the NESCAC title in Arena's inaugural 1994-95 season and repeated as conference champions in 1995-96. Amherst reclaimed the crown during the 1997-98 season, also making NCAA Championship appearances in 1997 and 1998. More recently, Arena was chosen by his peers as the 2010 NESCAC Coach of the Year, as Amherst finished among the top four teams at the conference's Fall Qualifier for the first time since the championship format was altered in 2008. During the 2011-12 season, Amherst won the Little Three championship and snapped Williams College's streak of 14 consecutive titles. Also entering his 34th season with the Amherst men's hockey team, Arena was a standout hockey player at Amherst and is the Purple & White's fourth all-time leading scorer. He capped an outstanding playing career by being selected the Hoby Baker Award winner as the most outstanding Division III collegiate player in the country. Arena is accompanied on the course by , who joins the men's golf coaching staff each spring after football season. As head coach of the Amherst football team, Mills has made his mark as one of the top coaches and defensive minds in the NESCAC and all of NCAA Division III, leading the program to a 117-35 record in 19 seasons, including a perfect 8-0 mark in 2009, 2011, 2014 and 2015.

Coached 2022 and 2023 NESCAC Women's Golf Champions Golf Pride Grips Region l Coach of Year 2024-2025 2-Time NESCAC Women's Golf Coach of the Year 2-Time WGCA Division III East Region Coach of the Year Won 2013 NCAA Division III National Championship as a golfer at Mary Hardin-Baylor Elizabeth Geene has led the Amherst College women's golf team since 2016 and became head coach of the men's golf team in 2020. Her Mammoths won the NESCAC Women's Golf Championship for the fourth year in a row in 2025, earning the Mammoths their sixth trip to the NCAA Division III Championships in Geene's eight-year tenure (no championship was held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Geene was named the Golf Pride Grips Region l Coach of the Year after a successful 2024-2025 season. Geene led the Men's Golf Team to four first-place finishes, including taking home first place at the NESCAC Championships. Other first-place finishes included the Bantams/Hawks Invitational, the Little Three Championship, and the Tim Brown Invitational. At the NCAA Championships, the mammoths took home 18th in the nation. Andre Zhang '28 was named an Honorable Mention All-American by the Golf Coaches Association of America. Geene was honored as both the NESCAC Women's Golf Coach of the Year and the WGCA Division III East Region Coach of the Year for the second time in 2022 after a season in which the Mammoths won three tournaments, including both the NESCAC Fall Qualifier and the NESCAC Championship. At the NCAA Championships, the Mammoths finished 12th in the nation as Jessica Huang '25 carded a 68 in the final round to match the lowest round in tournament history. Amherst swept the NESCAC's major awards as Huang was named Rookie of the Year and Gihoe Seo '25 earned Golfer of the Year honors, while both Huang and Seo were also named All-Americans. Geene previously earned the same coaching honors after her debut season in 2017 as the Amherst women earned their first bid to the national championships since 2009 and finished ninth in the nation. The following season, she led the Mammoths to a 14th-place finish at the NCAA Championships.   Geene has mentored 15 All-NESCAC and 9 All-Region honorees while leading the women's golf program to 10 first-place finishes in her first six seasons. She has also coached Huang to three consecutive All-American selections, including First Team honors in 2024. In her first two seasons with the men's team, Geene saw Steven Chen '25 earn NESCAC Rookie of the Year honors in 2022 after a season in which he won medalist honors at two events and finished second at the NESCAC Championships. As a collegiate golfer, the former Elizabeth Davis was a standout member of the 2013 NCAA Division III national champion squad at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (UMHB) and was named the team's most valuable player after leading the program to a national runner-up finish in 2014. Geene, who helped drive UMHB to the American Southwest Conference (ASC) championship in 2013, earned First Team All-ASC honors in 2014 and 2015, and was a Second Team All-ASC selection in 2013. Geene was also a three-time ASC All-Academic selection and earned the ASC Distinguished Scholar award in 2015. Geene finished her career as a two-time All-Region honoree and recorded five rounds of par or better, highlighted by a low round of 71 twice during her senior campaign. She graduated from Mary Hardin-Baylor with a bachelor's degree in 2015 and completed a master's in sports administration in 2016. During the 2013-14 year, Geene was a junior clinic instructor at Lakeside Country Club in Houston and directed the summer tournament ladder program and all junior golf tournaments. She facilitated weekly junior golf clinic workshops emphasizing safety, etiquette and country club rules. She also played a key role in pro shop operations and instructed junior golfers on proper swing mechanics, ensuring the general safety of all junior golfers during training. In 2015, she served as the tournament coordinator and rules official for the Texas Junior Golf Tour, monitoring pace of play and handling all aspects of the tournament venues. While at UMHB, she held an internship in the Crusaders' athletics department during her senior year, helping to successfully market the various athletics programs. She also held vital roles in game day operations for the department, as well as varying game management responsibilities. Genne resides in Holden with her husband, David, and miniature golden doodle, Ginger.

Meredith Mayes joined the Amherst golf coaching staff in Fall 2023 after a successful college golf career. The 2024-25 season is her second with the Mammoths.  Mayes played collegiate golf for five years at Brescia University in Owensboro, KY. There, she captained the golf team for all five years, winning two tournaments and posting multiple top five, top ten, and top fifteen finishes. Mayes first earned a bachelor’s degree in business in 2022 before continuing at Brescia to complete her master’s degree in business. While at Brescia, Mayes established a Student Athlete Advisory Committee and served on the executive board.