Photo by Roxie Gonzalez
The Eagles’ golf team struggled at the beginning of the Newman Fall Invitational, while they were able to make a comeback two weeks ago at the NCCAA Central Region Championship, they failed to do so this week.
The Eagles ended the first day in third place, but at the close of the tournament the team was in fourth place with a total score of 870.
Before the tournament, junior Sam Johnston said he was optimistic about how the team would play because of their positive mentality and prior success.
“I feel that we have a great chance of winning if we can all go out and maintain the confidence we had two weeks ago,” Johnston said. “It seems like everyone is playing well and we’re having a lot of fun, which is huge.”
After his performance at the NCCAA Central Region Championship, finishing in second place individually and in first with the team, Johnston received the honor of NCCAA’s men’s golf student-athlete of the week. This is the fifth time in his collegiate career that he has received this honor.
“The season to this point has been a progression towards something potentially great for me individually as well as the team,” Johnston said. “Having played poorly the first week, we bounced back and got a win, which goes miles for restoring confidence and moving forward.”
For this tournament Johnston once again led the Eagles, and this time with a first place individual finish. He completed the tournament with shots of 69, 67 and 70, for a total score of 206.
Freshman Zac Schaefer stayed near Johnston in the beginning with shots of 71 and 73 then concluded the tournament with a shot of 75 that tied him for 12th place at 219.
Senior Jared Consoli placed 21st in the first day by shooting 77 and 73, and fellow teammate Kevin Workman, who played individually, tied with Consoli after shooting 76 and 74, respectively. Consoli finished round three with a 71, which tied for 16th place with 221 strokes. Workman finished in a tie for 20th after shooting a 73.
Senior Trey Payne (77-78-74) completed in a tie for 31st place out of the 49-man field with 299, and freshman Asher Owen rounded out the Eagles with a 34th place finish after firing 82, 74 and 74, for a total score of 230.
Oklahoma Christian’s freshman Chase Esparaza (72-79-73) played as an individual and concluded the two-day tournament in a tie for 23rd place with 224.
Coach David Lynn looked at some strategies for his team to use during the Newman Fall Invitational as well as the remainder of the season.
“Our wedge games need to get better and so we’ve specifically tried to focus on that in practice last week,” Lynn said. “We’re working on hitting the ball straighter and being conservative where we need to be conservative.”
The Eagles will travel to Overland Park, Kansas, for the Bill Ross Intercollegiate Tournament on Oct. 12 and 13.
0
0
Be First to Comment