El Chaib, Smith Earn Southeastern Conference Annual Awards
May 02, 2025 | Women's Golf
ATHENS, Ga. — Graduate student Chantal El Chaib and sophomore Morgan Smith were honored by the Southeastern Conference with a pair of annual recognitions, as announced by the league office on Friday. El Chaib was named the 2025 SEC Newcomer of the Year while Smith earned a spot on the SEC Community Service Team.
El Chaib, a native of Abu Dhabi, UAE, transferred to Georgia from Sacred Heart for her graduate year and leads the Bulldogs with a tournament win at the White Sands Invitational, three top-three finishes, and five top-10 placements during the 2024-25 season. She boasts a stroke average of 73.52 with 13 par-or-better rounds and 89 birdies in 12 tournament appearances, all of which are team bests. El Chaib qualified for the NCAA Women's Golf Regionals as an individual and will represent the Bulldogs at the Rawls Course in Lubbock, Texas, from May 5-7.
Smith's contributions to the University of Georgia campus and within her hometown of Westford, Mass., earned her a Community Service Team selection. A member of the UGA Athletic Association's Leadership Education and Development (LEAD) Academy, she organized the group's "PAWS Panel," which featured three former student-athletes returning to campus to discuss the importance of mental health in college athletics. Back home in Massachusetts, Smith has contributed to a variety of community service efforts, including assisting with collections for Catie's Closet, a nonprofit that provides clothes, toiletries, and other basic essentials to students living in poverty right within their schools; leading golf clinics and coaching a Junior PGA team at her home course, Mount Pleasant Golf Course; and coaching a rec league basketball team of middle school girls while she was in high school.
El Chaib is set to continue her season at the NCAA Lubbock Regional on May 5-7, where she will look to punch her ticket to the NCAA Women's Golf Championship on May 16-21.
Players Mentioned
