Cody commits to play golf for Duke

One of the nation's most intense recruiting battles is over now that Pinewood Prep golf sensation Austin Cody has committed to play for Duke University.

Cody, a junior at Pinewood, is the No. 1 golfer in the state for his graduating class and is in the top 10 nationally. His accomplishments are impressive. He's won national and international championships and has been named a two-time Rolex Junior All-American by the American Junior Golf Association.

Austin was recruited by every major golf program in the country, and he and his parents mapped out a plan more than a year ago that helped him pick the college he felt most comfortable with. He made seven unofficial visits and then narrowed his top three to Duke, Georgia Tech and South Carolina.

"While my ultimate goal is to pursue a professional career in golf, I knew that selecting the right college would prepare me to take my talents to another level," Cody said. "My experiences in the AJGA and amateur tournaments have shown me that the best caliber of golfers is coming from the best programs in the country. I am honored to be aligned with the philosophy of coach (O.D.) Vincent and the Duke University golf program."

Vincent was a coach at UCLA before being hired at Duke in the summer of 2007. His former team won the 2008 NCAA championship.

Cody said his decision was based on academics, coaches, future teammates, and national championship possibilities.

"Each of the final three had its advantages, but Duke University is the best fit," Cody said. "Their golf facilities rank as one of the tops in the country and their home course hosted the 2001 NCAA championships."

Soccer smarts

Thousands of high schools across the country have soccer programs, but only 402 teams (148 boys, 254 girls) earned the NSCAA/adidas Team Academic Award for exemplary performance in the classroom as a team during the 2007-08 academic year.

That's a pretty select group.

An even more select group is the 56 schools in the United States that received honors for both its girls and boys teams.

Two of the elite are Academic Magnet and West Ashley.

The Academic Magnet boys had the highest grade-point average in the state, with a 4.08 mark — .23 better than Brookland-Cayce's 3.85. The Academic Magnet girls had a 4.04 GPA, which was slightly than Brookland-Cayce's 4.03.

The West Ashley boys had a 3.36 GPA, while the Wildcat girls had a 3.57 GPA.

Four other schools in the Palmetto State had both its boys and girls teams honored: Brookland-Cayce, Byrnes, Irmo and Northwestern.

Nominations

The Post and Courier will announce its All-Lowcountry Football Team in the Dec. 25 edition. Coaches can nominate players and should e-mail the player's size, weight, position and grade with all pertinent information and statistics to pbowman@postandcourier.com by Dec. 12.

Reach Philip M. Bowman at pbowman@postandcourier.com or 937-5592.