The Eagles golf team came off the previous week’s victory to settle for third place at the St. Edward’s Invitational on Monday and Tuesday.
Oklahoma Christian University stood in second place, led by junior Sam Johnston, after Monday’s two rounds on the 6,519-yard Onion Creek course.
“There weren’t many obstacles this week for the team aside from the usual challenges – learning a new course, the conditions, etc.,” Johnston said. “The weather was excellent and the course was just fine.”
The five-man squad rallied after the morning round and four of the men improved their scores to set the Eagles’ score at 532, two strokes behind the leading University of Central Missouri.
Johnston ended Monday in second place after swinging 69 and 70 on the par-70 course. Manuel Hernandez posted 73 and 72 while Zac Schaefer, who won the Broncho Invitational on March 21, recorded 75 and 72.
Alejandro Valenzuela improved from 76 to 75 and Juan Pallach rounded out the team his scores of 79 and 70.
Johnston maintained a steady 70 in Tuesday’s final round and tied at fourth place in the 80-man field.
Meanwhile, the remainder of the team switched places. Valenzuela swung a 66 and Pallach a 68 to take the second and third places on the team, respectively, and tie for 15th overall.
Hernandez and Schaefer dropped back tie for 37th and 53rd, respectively, after Hernandez posted 77 and Schaefer hit a 78. This pulled back the team from second to third place overall with a score of 858, seven strokes behind Central Missouri and the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, who tied for first.
“We went toe-to-toe with one of the top-10 teams in the country and could have come out on top,” Johnston said. “Despite the emphasis placed on winning tournaments, golf isn’t a game based on individual outcomes. It’s all about consistently putting yourself in position to have a chance. We did that and we weren’t the best team today, but we were there and we know we can just as easily come out ahead in the future.”
Oklahoma Christian claimed the highest Heartland Conference finish out of the 15-team tournament, beating out seven other conference competitors.
The Eagles will continue their season at the Dallas Baptist Patriot Classic on April 4.
Statistics provided by the Oklahoma Christian University Sports Information office.
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