The Emory University women's golf team was well-represented with year-end national awards as they were presented Monday night at the Women's Golf Coaches Association banquet ahead of the start of the NCAA Championships at Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, California.
Sophomore Zimo Li headlined the Eagles with WGCA honors as she was tabbed as the Division III National Player of the Year and was one of three Eagles named to the PING All-America First Team alongside junior Carys Code and freshman Amanda Zheng. Furthermore, Zheng was chosen to the Division III All-Freshman Team and junior Esther Jung was selected as an All-America Honorable Mention. Additionally, all four Eagles landed a spot on the WGCA All-Region team for Region 2/Southeast.
Li followed up her rookie season where she was named the National Rookie of the Year with a phenomenal sophomore season, delivering top ten performances at every meet this season including an individual win at the Space Coast Classic in a field of Division I competition. She broke the program record for lowest single-round score alongside Code at the Tartan Invitational, shooting a 66 (-6) in her second round. Her lowest two-round total also came at the Tartan Invitational where she turned in a 138 (-6) over 36 holes.
In an encore to winning the 2025 DIII individual championship, Code put together an excellent junior campaign where she posted eight top 15 placements on the year including an individual win at the Hollins Cup this past fall as well as top three showings in the Historic Triangle Invitational and the Tartan Invitational. Her lowest tournament total of the season came at the Tartan Invitational where she shot a two-round total 137 (-7) to take second place overall. Code also broke the program single-round scoring record at the tournament with a 66 (-6).
Zheng turned in one of the best freshman campaigns in program history, earning three individual titles and posting eight top 20 performances on the season. She tied the program single-round scoring record when she won the Deb Jackson Invitational, delivering a 141 (-1) over two rounds and shooting a 66 (-5) during round one. She added medalist honors at the Jekyll Island Collegiate and Historic Triangle Invitational competitions.
Jung had a stellar third season, putting together five top-30 performances on the year including a pair of top five efforts. Her best showing came at the Deb Jackson Invitational where she finished as the individual runner-up with a 36-hole score of 145 (+3). She also placed in the top five at the Tartan Invitational, turning in a 139 (-5) over two rounds to take fourth overall.
The 2026 NCAA Championships gets underway on Tuesday in Palm Desert.
