INDIANAPOLIS – Missouri-St. Louis senior Wilma Zanderau has been named the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Women's Golf Player of the Year, while Indianapolis Paige Giovenco earned the Freshman of the Year nod, and Missouri-St. Louis head coach Troy Halterman was chosen by his peers as GLVC Coach of the Year, it was announced by the Conference office on Monday.
Per GLVC Bylaws, each of the top-five finishers at the GLVC Championship automatically earn an All-Conference selection, with the individual medalist at the Conference Tournament earning First Team Honors. Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own players.
Player of the Year: Wilma Zanderau, Senior, Missouri-St. Louis
- Becomes the fifth golfer to win back-to-back Player of the Year awards and first since Pilar Echeverria won three in a row for Indianapolis in 2017-19.
- Played in 33 rounds during the 2025-26 season with a 74.2 stroke average and season-low 65 at the UMSL Spring Invitational.
- Earned three top five finishes this season with five top-10 finishes in 11 events.
- Ranked No. 3 in the GLVC, tenth in NCAA East Region, and 81st in NCAA Division II.
- Helped Tritons to two tournament wins and the 2026 GLVC title.
- Finished third at GLVC Championship (75-74-72–221).
Freshman of the Year: Paige Giovenco, Indianapolis
- Becomes UIndy’s tenth Freshman of the Year with her unanimous selection and first since Jess Haines in 2024.
- Played in 30 rounds during the 2025-26 season with a 73.8 stroke average and season-low 69 at the Folds of Honor Challenge.
- Earned three runner-up finishes, and three more top-10 efforts in 10 events.
- Ranked first in the GLVC, third in NCAA East Region, and 32nd in NCAA Division II.
- Helped Greyhounds to the Oldfield Intercollegiate victory as well as the top seed in the GLVC Tournament, as well as six top five finishes.
- Finished second at GLVC Championship (73-71-76–220).
Coach of the Year: Troy Halterman, Missouri-St. Louis
- Wins first Coach of the Year award and second overall for Missouri-St. Louis, joining James Earle in 2010.
- Led Tritons to the No.2 seed in GLVC Championship medal/match play and first Conference title with a 3-2 semifinal win over third-seeded Maryville and 3-2 finals win over top-seeded Indianapolis.
- Mentored Missouri-St. Louis to two tournament wins, including GLVC Championship title, to go along with two runner-up finishes and two other top-five results.
- Guided Wilma Zanderau (75-74-72-221) to the GLVC Player of the Year honor, as well as Hillary Currier (76-73-78-227) to All-GLVC First Team All-Tournament honors. Coached All-GLVC Second Teamers Mayan Covarrubias, Emely Wahl, and Hope Williams.
Along with Zanderau and Giovenco, All-Tournament honorees on the First Team included Indianapolis’ Ava Ray and Macey Brown, as well as McKendree’s Chiara Bortolotti. Illinois Springfield’s Elaine Grant, Indianapolis’ Caroline Whallon, Lewis’ Kendall Farm, and Maryville’s Fernanda Diaz-Pizzaro rounded out the First Team honorees.
The league also recognized 13 GLVC James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Award honorees for the sport and UIndy as the team award winner. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. These individuals must also be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting. The honorees are now eligible to become one of their school’s two Spalding Sportsmanship Award winners, which will be announced later this month.
A complete list of All-GLVC performers and major postseason award winners can be found below.
GLVC PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Wilma Zanderau, Sr., Missouri-St. Louis
GLVC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Paige Giovenco, Indianapolis #
GLVC COACH OF THE YEAR: Troy Halterman, Missouri-St. Louis
#Unanimous selection
ALL-GLVC FIRST TEAM
Elaine Grant, Sr., UIS
Macey Brown, Sr., UINDY
Paige Giovenco, Fr., UINDY
Caroline Whallon, Jr., UINDY
Ava Ray, Sr., UINDY
Kendall Farm, Gr., LEWIS
Fernanda Diaz-Pizarro, Jr., MU
Chiara Bortolotti, Jr., MCK
Hillary Currier, Jr., UMSL
Wilma Zanderau, Sr., UMSL
ALL-GLVC SECOND TEAM
Kyra Simon, Jr., LEWIS
Divyasheni Gunasegar, Jr., LIN
Kaathiyayani Gunasegar, Sr., LIN
Zih Cing Wang, Fr., MU
Alba Camps, So., MCK
Mayan Covarrubias, So., UMSL
Emely Wahl, So., UMSL
Hope Williams, So., UMSL
Arantza Zepeda, Fr., RU
Reese Stovall, Sr., TSU
Addison Weber, So., UIU
GLVC JAMES R. SPALDING SPORTSMANSHIP HONOREES
Grace Stafford, DU
Erin Ahmadfazir, UIS
Abby Stone, UINDY
Cassidy Virzi, LEWIS
Kaathiyayani Gunasegar, LIN
Maddie Vanderheyden, MU
Reagan Martin, MCK
Emmy Wahl, UMSL
Laci Novosel, QU
Sarah Hinkamp, RU
Madalyn Breckenridge, TSU
Lizzy Ellis, UIU
Lily Frazier, WJC
GLVC JAMES R. SPALDING SPORTSMANSHIP TEAM AWARD
Lewis