July 26, 2011
="" alt="Knight Head" border="0" class="imported"> Read John Denton's Knights Insider | ="" alt="Twitter Logo" border="0" class="imported">Follow us on Twitter | ="" alt="Facebook Logo" border="0" class="imported">Get social with the Knights on Facebook
By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - UCF men's golf head coach Bryce Wallor announced Tuesday that a pair of talented transfers, Ricardo Gouveia and Jose Joia, have joined the Knights and will compete for the program starting this fall. Natives of Portugal, Gouveia and Joia come to UCF from Lynn, where they earned NCAA Division II Ping All-America First Team honors this past season.
The duo joins a UCF program that recently claimed its third-consecutive Conference USA Championship title and participated in the NCAA Regionals for the fifth-straight season.
"To have the opportunity to bring in two sophomores who are extremely tournament tested and both had great years this past season should help our program considerably," Wallor said. "Both Ricardo and Jose really fit in well with our team."
Gouveia and Joia helped Lynn finish second at the NCAA Division II Championship in May. Gouveia tied for third during stroke play, and Joia tied for 11th. Earlier in the month, Gouveia took medalist honors at the NCAA South/Southeast Regional.
Gouveia was the recipient of the Phil Mickelson Award presented to the most outstanding freshman in Division II men's golf. In addition to finishing first at the NCAA South/Southeast Regional, he won the crown at the Rollins College Invitational and also claimed top-five finishes at the Golfweek DII Spring Invitational, Bobcat Invitational and Sunshine State Conference Championship. In addition to garnering Golf Coaches Association of America All-Freshman Team honors, he was honored as the Sunshine State Conference Freshman of the Year and also received all-league first team recognition.
Gouveia is listed at No. 112 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Last summer, he played well on the European amateur circuit, placing second at the RiverWoods Junior Open in Holland and finishing ninth at the German International Amateur.
"Ricardo is a great student-athlete," Wallor said. "I think he has some great leadership qualities. He was the national freshman of the year and he is bringing some great playing credentials with him to UCF."
Joia joined his teammate on the GCAA All-Freshman Team, as well as the All-Sunshine State Conference First Team. He recorded six top-10 showings during the campaign, and took medalist honors at the NSU Shark Invitational. Joia placed in the top five at the Matlock Collegiate, Bobcat Invitational and Buccaneer Invitational.
Joia is ranked 387th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. In 2010, he placed fourth at the Finnish Amateur and also participated in the prestigious European Team Championship.
"Jose also comes to UCF as a fantastic student-athlete. He had some experience playing with the Portuguese national team. Jose also had a great year for Lynn and brings a proven tournament résumé with him to UCF," Wallor said.
In 2010-11, UCF won three tournament titles. The Knights competed in 11 events, and posted seven total top-five finishes. Wallor has led UCF to league titles and trips to the postseason in both of his two campaigns at the school.