Georgia Southern wins own Schenkel Invite
STATESBORO, Ga. – Somewhere in Scotland, a lovely lady named Angela Sharkey is smiling.
Her son, Thomas, was a Georgia Southern golfer, and as is the case with most Eagle golfers, he loved playing in the Schenkel Invitational, the Eagles’ home tournament for 35 years.
Georgia Southern seniors Hayden Anderson, Will Evans and Drew Guffey, along with redshirt junior Matthew Mierzejewski, knew her son Thomas and knew him very well. He was a teammate and a friend, and he passed away after a house fire in his Scotland home in 2011.
This year would have been Thomas’ senior year and last Schenkel Invitational, and prior to this weekend’s tournament, Evans said that it would be a tall task, but if they were to win the title, they would like to take the trophy to Angela in Scotland.
Scotland, here we come.
The 2014 Eagles etched their names into the annals of Georgia Southern golf by winning the Schenkel Invitational team title at a rain-soaked Forest Heights Country Club on Sunday. In a storied program that has made 20 NCAA Championship appearances, it the first time the Eagles have won their home tournament, one of the most prestigious in college golf, which featured four top-20 teams this year.
Junior Scott Wolfes won the individual medalist honors after firing a 68 and finished the tournament 7-under-par (71-70-68=209). He is just the third Eagle to take home the individual title, joining Jimmy Ellis in 1973 and Richie Bryant in 1989.
Anderson and Evans provided the magic Saturday with each acing a par-3 hole to stake the Eagles to a four-shot lead after the second round. Wolfes and Charlie Martin, who shot a 72 Sunday, helped increase the margin as Georgia Southern (-14) finished eight strokes ahead of UAB (-6). UCF (-2) was third.
Four Eagles finished in the top six of the individual standings and five were in the top 25. Evans posted a 73 Sunday to finish 3-under for the tournament and tie for fourth, and Henry Mabbett, who played as an individual, shot 71 to tie for fourth. Martin tied for sixth, and Anderson tied for 22nd.
Martin Rohwer (-5) from UAB placed second, and Virginia’s Jimmy Stanger (-4) was third.
Mierzejewski shot a 75 Sunday for the Eagles, and Kim Koivu, who played as an individual, posted a 74. Individuals Christian Humber and Guffey carded a 78, while Sam Towler posted a 79.
Wolfes made the turn at 1-under and birdied three out of the first four holes on the back. He bogeyed 17 and 18 but finished the round with a birdie on hole 1 to tie the lowest round of the day.
Rain began as teams were playing the last nine holes and pounded the course for the rest of the day.
The Eagles are back in action March 28-30 at the FAU Slomin Center Invitational in at The Fountains in Lake Worth, Fla.
Davidson in fifth at Seahawk Intercollegiate
WILMINGTON, N.C. – After firing a career- and tournament-low 64 and sharing the opening-round lead, Davidson's Sam Echikson shot a 2-over 74 in the afternoon and will enter the final day of the Seahawk Intercollegiate in second place, one off the lead.
The 54-hole event hosted by UNCW is being played on the par-72 Country Club of Landfall’s Nicklaus Course.
Davidson, which sat tied for second following a 10-under 278 Sunday morning, posted a 308 in round two and is currently fifth, just seven swings out of the runner-up position held by ETSU.
South Carolina shot a pair of sub-par rounds and leads the 13-team field by 19 strokes at 16-under 560.
A native of Brussels, Belgium, Echikson was one of three Wildcats to break par in his opening round. The senior is one shot behind the Gamecocks’ Will Starke, who set a new 36-hole record of 137 (-7).
Coming off his 16th top-10 finish, Richard Fountain (71-74) is currently tied for 13th. Teammates David Sargent (72-79) and Todd Eckstein (71-81) are tied for 32nd and 38th, respectively, while Andy Simmons is in a group at 160 (79-81).
Monday’s third and final round will begin at 8:18 a.m. The Wildcats will be paired with in-state foes East Carolina and UNCW.
Elon ninth at Seahawk Intercollegiate
WILMINGTON, N.C. – Despite cool temperatures and rain, the Elon men's golf team battled to a ninth-place standing following the first two rounds of the Seahawk Intercollegiate on Sunday. The Phoenix posted a score of 599 (300-299) at the end of the day.
Leading the way for the maroon and gold was Stuart Kaufman, who will begin Monday's final round in a tie for 13th out of 78 participants with a score of 145 (71-74).
In a tie for 32nd is Jeff Krieger, who carded rounds of 75 and 76 to end the day at 151.
The duo of Will DiIanni and his brother Jonathan DiIanni are tied for 38th after day one. The pair each posted a 152 on Sunday. Will had rounds of 78 and 74, while Jonathan carded rounds of 77 and 75.
John Somers will begin the third round in a tie for 67th after shooting a 154 (77-77) on day one.
Raphael Higuet, who is playing as an individual, shot a 152 (81-71) over his 36 holes and is tied for 38th.
South Carolina's Will Starke is the individual leader after two rounds. Starke stands at 137 (64-73) with one round to play.
South Carolina, rated 25th by Golfweek, leads the 13-team field after shooting a 560 (273-287) as a team on day one.
The rest of the top five consists of 58th-ranked East Tennessee State (579), 69th-ranked Ohio State (581), 52nd-rated Louisville (581) and 84th-ranked Davidson (586).
There are two other top-100 teams are in the field - 85th-ranked UNCW (7th, 596) and 79th-rated East Carolina (11th, 610).
Elon is two strokes back of eighth-place Wisconsin and eight shots ahead of 10th-place Army with one round to play.
Appalachian State finishes eighth at Mission Inn Spectacular
HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla. – The Appalachian State University men’s golf team finished the Mission Inn Spectacular tournament in eighth place, receiving a low round of even-par by sophomore Lee Mitchell at the par-72, 6,884-yard Mission Inn Resort Golf Course on Saturday and Sunday.
The 54-hole tournament featured 17 schools and 97 total individuals, including powerhouse schools Virginia Tech, Texas Tech and VCU.
Appalachian carded a tournament total of 941, gaining spectacular rounds from Mitchell. Mitchell carded a total tournament score of 225 (+9) and a 10th place individual finish. After shooting 75 in the first round, he improved by going even-par in the second round. Faulty play in the third round kept Mitchell from a top-five finish.
Sophomore Caleb Keck finished with a tournament total of 237. He was only four strokes behind Mitchell after the second round but posted a third-round score of 86 that pushed him to finish tied for 47th.
Senior John Michael Cole, junior Eric Eberspeaker and senior Casey Komline finished the tournament in 60th, 65th and 71st place, respectively. Cole finished the tournament with a total score of 241. Eberspeaker started the tournament off strong, posting a first-round score of 77, but could not repeat the great play in the second and third rounds.
Fourteenth-ranked Virginia Tech finished with a team score of 875 to win the tournament, and Trevor Cone of Virginia Tech took home the individual title.
The Mountaineers will be back in action March 23-25 at the Kingsmill Intercollegiate hosted by William and Mary at the Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, Va.