WINTER PARK, Fla. – The 18th-ranked Carson-Newman men's golf team recorded its highest score in a round since the opening tournament of the 2015 season as the Eagles concluded the McDonough Cup with a final round 299 to finish 12th at the event hosted by Rollins at Rio Pinar Country Club.
The Eagles, which had recorded fourth-consecutive top-10 finishes in tournaments leading up to the McDonough Cup, recorded a 299 during the final round on Tuesday for the highest score since a 302 posted at during the final of the Kiawah Island Invitational.
Carson-Newman concluded the final portion of its second round from Monday that was postponed due to darkness with a score of 286, the team's lowest combined round of the event. The Eagles posted the fourth-lowest score among the 18 teams in the field with a score of 12-under on par-fives.
Seniors Jace Devault (Bluff City, Tenn.) and Andrew Hall (Knoxville, Tenn.) posted the highest finishes for the Eagles as Devault led C-N with a 30th-place showing, while Hall finished 37th.
"It was a tough week for the Eagles this week. We finished 12th out of 22 teams in a great field. No one on our team played particularly well; I guess I should have prepared them better. We look forward to competing at the highest-level this coming spring, as we've just completed an excellent fall season," coach Randy Wylie said.
After finishing the final four holes of his second round 70, which was his second-best round of the year, Devault shot a 74 during Tuesday's final round. The senior birdied three of the four par-fives on the course and ended the day with four total birdies. Devault finished with 11 birdies during the three-round tournament.
Hall posted his second-straight over-par round with a final round 74 that was highlighted by two birdies in three holes. The senior finished the fall with a stroke average of 69.6, which is almost one full stroke lower than the South Atlantic Conference season-low of 70.5 set by fellow Eagle Gavin Hay in 2006. C-N's Jonathan Kim-Moss , a former first-team All-SAC member, has the second-lowest record in the conference with a 70.6 average in 2013.
Freshman Jake Headrick (Maryville, Tenn.) finished the tournament with a three-over 75 on Tuesday and finished in a tie for 64th at five-over 221. Headrick birdied his final hole of the day, the par-five 10th, to get to 75. He is the lone freshman to compete in every tournament for the Eagles during the fall portion of the schedule.
Senior Nicklaus Kennedy (London, Ontario, Canada) tied for 78th after posting a final round score of 79. Kennedy's front-nine was shot at even-par and highlighted by a birdie on the par-five first hole. Kennedy shot one-over and one-under during his first two rounds. Junior Dalton Reese (Warrenton, Ga.) dropped two shots from his second round score for a 76 during Tuesday's round. Reese entered the clubhouse with birdies on three of his final four holes of the event.
Lynn won the tournament by 15 strokes over Flagler, while West Florida finished a stroke off Flagler for third. Lynn's Mateo Gomez rose two spots on the leaderboard for individual medalist honors with a playoff win over Rollins's Emil Sorebo. Lynn's Elliott Whitley and Manuel Torres finished in a tie for third.
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12 Carson-Newman 288-286-299 873 (+9)
T30 Jace Devault 72-70-74 216 (Even)
T37 Andrew Hall 71-73-74 218 (+2)
T64 Jake Headrick 74-72-75 221 (+5)
T78 Nicklaus Kennedy 73-71-79 223 (+7)
T90 Dalton Reese 72-78-76 226 (+10)
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