WCU Men’s Golfer Ricky Stout Claims First-ever Collegiate Medalist Honors at Firestone Invitational
Stout shoots five under to lead the Catamounts, wins the tournament by a stroke
Akron, Ohio ? Western Carolina senior Ricky Stout led from start to finish claiming his first-ever collegiate individual medalist honors, winning the Firestone Invitational on Tuesday at the par-72, 7,125-yard Firestone Country Club North Course. Stout and the 68-golfer field battled blustery conditions over the final 18 holes including temperatures in the mid-40s and a strong, 20 mile per hour wind.
Stout’s previous career-best finish came at last season’s Southern Conference Championship when he finished tied for fifth with a three-under 213. His two-day, three-round score of 211 is tied for the 14th-best in WCU history.
Stout edged runner-up, Marty Jeppesen of Eastern Michigan, by a stroke, 211-to-212, and held a three-stroke advantage over the third-place finisher, Robert McRae of St. Mary’s-California (214).
Led by McRae, St. Mary’s ? California won the overall team title by a stroke over Eastern Michigan, 869-to-870. Michigan State (888), which was third at the end of each of the first two rounds, held onto its second runner-up position in third, followed by Kansas State (889) and Kentucky (890) rounding out the top five teams.
Stout was the bright spot for the Catamount men, which finished 11th in the 11-team field with a 54-hole score of 918. It was the first time since the Mizuno Intercollegiate just over a year ago (Oct. 6-7) that WCU had not shot under 900 collectively as a team in tournament play, a span of nine tournaments.
The New Bern, N.C., native finished as one of four golfers in the field to post a pair of Eagles, while carding 37 pars, tied for third-best. He finished seven-under on the par-5 holes and was even on the shortest, par-3 layouts.
Senior Tanner Briele finished tied for 42nd for the Catamounts, shooting 81 on Tuesday for a three-round score of 229. Classmate Drew Miller placed in a tie for 60th at 238, firing his tournament-low round of 75 on the final 18 holes. Rounding out WCU’s scorers were sophomore Kyle Wilson in 65th (244) and freshman Jonathan Davies one-stroke in arrears in 66th (245).
Playing as an individual, Rylan Lanham posted a 54-hole score of 228 to finish tied for 38th.
Western Carolina returns to action on October 25-27 at the Aldila Intercollegiate, hosted by SoCon foe, Chattanooga, at the Council Fire Golf Club. The Catamounts finished tied for eighth in the same event a season ago, shooting the eighth-lowest team tournament score in school history at 865. Stout posted a then career-best finish of eighth on the course with a career-low, three-round score of 205.
Medeiros Claims Individual Championship, Terriers Finish Second at Davidson Invitational
DAVIDSON, N.C. ? Senior Garrett Medeiros claimed the individual championship, leading the Terrier men’s golf team to a second-place finish at the Davidson College Invitational on Tuesday.
Medeiros finished the tournament at one-under par 215 (70-70-75) to take the title. The win marks the first career tournament title and ninth top-ten finish for the senior from Rumford, R.I. Also finishing in the top twenty for the Terriers was sophomore Zach Capps. Capps carded a 227 (76-74-77) to finish tied for 16th.
Fellow freshman Mark Joye and senior Mike McKenzie came in tied for 22nd with scores of 228. Rounding out the Terrier lineup was sophomore Brent Whitehead, who shot a 249 in three rounds.
Wofford finished a mere two strokes behind tournament winner Liberty with a team score of 898 (295-298-305). The second-place finish marks the sixth time the Terriers have finished in the top five at the Davidson Invitational.
The men’s golf team will compete again October 19-20 at the Mizuno Savannah Intercollegiate in Savannah, Ga.
Liberty Wins 2009 Davidson College Invitational; Davidson Ties For Seventh
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Liberty hung on for a two-stroke win over Wofford in the third-and-final round of the 2009 Davidson College Invitational at River Run Country Club on Tuesday. Sophomore Jackson Taylor led the hosting Wildcats to a tie for seventh with a team-best round of 71.
Both Liberty (896, 287+304+305) and Wofford (898, 295+298+305) shot final-round 305's. Wofford's Garrett Medeiros (215, 70+70+75) remained as the individual leader and won by four strokes as the only individual to finish under par (-1). Ciaran McKenna of Francis Marion shot a one-under par 70 to place second at 219.
The Wildcats were one of just four teams in the 12-team field to post a sub-300 score on the much sunnier final day of competition. Taylor rebounded after a difficult second round to finish with a total of 224 (73+80+71) and place in a tie for eighth individually. Junior Bobby Urso also improved, shooting a two-over par 74 to place in a tie for 16th at 227 (76+77+74).
Freshmen John Skeadas (230) and Walker Allen (238) were the 'Cats third and fourth-best finishers. Allen rallied with a final-round 74 after a tough first day. Junior Christopher Rollins rounded out the group at 246.
"Overall we were expecting to do a little bit better, but we showed some signs of good things to come," said Davidson head coach Tim Straub. "We have a young team that is gaining experience with every tournament, so we have some things to work on throughout the rest of the year."
The 'Cats placed behind Southern Conference members Wofford and Appalachian State (sixth, 910), but ahead of Elon (ninth, 919) and Charleston Southern (11th, 927)
The Invitational took place at the River Run Country Club, a 7,208-yard, par-72 championship course located in Davidson. The course was recognized by Golf Reporter as one of the finest tracks in the Southeast, and went through a complete renovation in 2007, including a rebuilding of all of the greens, and a laser-leveling of the tee boxes. It is one of the home courses for the Davidson golf program, giving the 'Cats one of the top facilities in the area.
Davidson will conclude the fall season next week when they compete in the Mizuno Savannah Intercollegiate hosted by Georgia Southern in Savannah, Ga.
Final Standings
Fin. School Scores
1. Liberty University, 896, +32
2. Wofford College, 898, +34
3. Gardner-Webb U., 900, +36
4. Guilford College, 902, +38
5. Francis Marion U., 905, +41
6. Appalachian State U., 910, +46
t7. Radford University, 913, +49
t7.Davidson College, 913, +49
9. Elon University, 919, +55
10. Army, 926, +62
11. Charleston Southern, 927, +63
12. Northern Illinois U., 938, +74