December 31, 2024

Wylie Unveils Challenging but Familiar Spring Slate

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Director of golf Randy Wylie has unveiled the 2024 spring schedule, featuring a handful of events with top competition from the southeast region.

"We have a really tough schedule," Wylie said. "We have one of the best schedules in the country. We will be seeing all of the top teams in our region throughout the spring. We're excited to get going. We've got to step up our game a little bit if we're going to make the NCAA tournament, and that's one of our goals in addition to trying to win the conference championship… I really like our schedule a lot and I think our guys are going to really enjoy it."

With a healthy mix of youth and experience, Wylie is looking forward to seeing his team progress and gain experience throughout the daunting spring schedule.

"We have a good mix of older and younger players," Wylie said. "We're going to depend on those young players to step up their game, be a little more mature, and handle all of their business in the spring because we're going to need that. The seniors are really good leaders and they all work really hard… I've been really encouraged by the mix of mature older guys and some younger guys that are trying to figure it out."

The Eagles kick off their schedule with a familiar course on February 17^th and 18^th, heading to Dade City, Florida, for the St. Leo Invitational at Lake Jovita Country Club. C-N competed in this event in the spring of 2024, finishing tied for 11^th. Wylie's squad jumped two spots on the final day of action, propelled by a top-30 finish from Noah Cambridge and a tournament-low round from Nick Daugherty, shooting a 69 in the final round.

C-N sees a month off before competing in the Ralph Hargett Invitational on March 17^th and 18^th at the Rolling Hills Country Club in Monroe, North Carolina. The second spring event serves as another familiar challenge from a year ago. The Eagles earned an 8^th place finish in the event last March but dropped from their 4^th place positioning after the first day of action. However, Noah Cambridge delivered a round below par, and Elliot MacGregor stroked a stellar 67 in the first round.

Despite having a nice break inbetween the first two events, C-N will face quick turnarounds the rest of the season. The Eagles return to action the following week on March 24^th and 25^th, heading down the road for the Tennessee River Rumble at the Windriver Golf Club in Lenoir City, Tennessee. C-N tied for 10^th at the event last season, led by Nick Daugherty who shot his best round of the tournament in round three to finish the event tied for 27^th.

The Eagles close out the regular season on March 31^st at the Music City Invitational at the Hermitage Golf Club in Hickory, Tennessee, breaking the theme of familiarity throughout the majority of the spring schedule. This will mark the first time the Eagles have competed in this event.

Following the final regular season event, the Eagles will look to close what they hope will be a strong case for the NCAA Tournament at the SAC Championships on April 13^th through 15^th at the Verde Green Golf Club in Greenville, South Carolina. The Eagles earned a solid 4^th place finish at the conference tournament in 2024, but it was not enough to earn a team bid to the NCAA Tournament. However, Elliot MacGregor was stellar, earning a 4^th place individual finish. Noah Cambridge also delivered a solid performance, finishing tied for 11^th.

Heading into the challenging spring schedule, there are a handful of things that Wylie hopes to see from his team in order to take the next step and make the NCAA Tournament as a team.

"We've got to be more consistent," Wylie said. "We counted too many 77s in the fall… When you play a great schedule and you're playing good teams, you just can't afford to do that. You've got to be able to be tough enough, smart enough, and skilled enough to, even if you don't have a great round, turn that into a 74 and not a 77. That comes with experience, practice, strategy, and coaching. I've got to coach them up a little bit and they've got to grow up a little bit. Between that, I think we can make some good progress and start having some top finishes."

The Eagles kick off the 2025 spring season on February 17^th and 18^th in Dade City, Florida, at the St. Leo Invitational.

For updates throughout the spring season, visit cneagles.com and follow us on social media @cn_eagles.