Eagles show improvement on final day in Florida, tie for fifth
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Carson-Newman men’s golf team posted a score of nine-over to rise two spots into a tie for fifth on the final day of the Spring Kickoff Intercollegiate at The Golf Club at Fleming Island in Jacksonville, Fla. on Tuesday.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Carson-Newman men's golf team posted a score of nine-over to rise two spots into a tie for fifth on the final day of the Spring Kickoff Intercollegiate at The Golf Club at Fleming Island in Jacksonville, Fla. on Tuesday.
"We were solid but not spectacular today," golf coach Randy Wylie said. "Tying for fifth was not the finish we were looking for, but it's also not a bad way to start the spring season."
Tom Forster finished the tournament with C-N's lowest score, a four-over 217 that tied him for 11th and left the freshman just one shot outside the top 10. The native of Oundle, England had a rough start to his day, shooting six-over on the front nine before recovering and finishing the back nine three-under. He concluded his afternoon with an eagle on 18, one of just 11 eagles registered in the event. Forster also placed in the top 10 in stroke average on par fives and par threes.
Dalton Reese's (Warrenton, Ga.) final round 73 tied for the team's best mark on Tuesday. His last 18 holes saw him make six birdies, including four-in-a-row at one point. His 13 total birdies for the competition were the second-most in the field. He also entered the clubhouse tied for 10th with a stroke average of 4.11 on par fours.
One of the players who matched Reese's 73 was sophomore Anthony Marcinelli (Knoxville, Tenn.). He made par on the day's first eight holes before a picking up a birdie. He did bogey three holes on the back nine to finish at two-over with a 73. Due to Marcinelli being unable to play the second round on Monday, he finished 81st.
The Eagles also received a 73 from Fintan McKenna (Westhill, U.K.) on the final day. He put up a score of par on the front nine and also finished strong with a birdie on the 18th. His 73 ties for the freshman's second lowest round of golf this season. For the event, McKenna tied for 69th.
Despite having the roughest Tuesday of all of coach Wylie's golfers, Jake Headrick (Maryville, Tenn.) still finished with the squad's third highest score over 54 holes with a mark of 11-over and tied for 28th. He completed the front nine at plus-four, but rebounded to conclude the afternoon with a five-over 76. Headrick also piled up 34 pars during the tournament, the 10th most.
Lincoln Memorial emerged from competition victorious, with a 13-over 865. That was good enough to beat out second-place Young Harris by three strokes and third-place Flagler by 10.
Nick Stafford from Belmont Abbey took home the tournament's individual championship. He topped the field by four strokes with a five-under 208. His two days in Florida included a seven-under 64 in round two. Siyan David Liu from Palm Beach Atlantic, who shot a one-under 212, was the only other player to finish under par. David Wallin from Young Harris posted a one-over 214 and rounded out the top three.
The Eagles are scheduled to participate in three tournaments in March, beginning with the Panther Invitational at the Duran Golf Club in Viera, Fla. on March 6th and 7th. For updates regarding the team, visit cneagles.com and follow @cnathletics on Twitter.
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