DADE CITY, Fla. – No. 20 Carson-Newman used a three-stroke improvement from the second round to third to garner a third-place finish with a +5 total of 869 at the Saint Leo Invitational on Tuesday.
This is the team's best finish at the event after finishing at fifth the past two years and seventh in its first appearance in 2015. Beyond that, this is the third top five finish on the year and their second top three finish in back-to-back events.
As a team, the Eagles shot a 288 in the final round to stay even with par, giving them the third-best round on the day.
"Solid play today, not our best, but I was pleased with the improvement," coach Randy Wylie said. "We need to keep improving throughout the spring."
C-N was the third-best par 4 and par 5 scoring team in the tournament with 4.16 and 4.67 averages, respectively. It also shot the third-most amount of birdies through the three rounds with 49.
Tom Forster (Oundle, England) picked up his second top-five finish on the season, holding sole possession of fifth place at four-under with a 212. His day began with a bogey out of the gate but followed it with a birdie to get back to even. Another bogey and birdie kept him level with par before the back nine. The junior shot a double bogey on the par 3 12th hole but made up for it with two birdies to remain even with a 72 in the round.
Forster was the top par 5 scorer with a 10-under showing with a 4.17 average. The worst he shot on such holes was even at par but he did turn in an eagle on the par 5 13th hole in the first round to help his average.
Three shots behind Forster was Jackson Tyler (Wilmington, N.C.), who closed out the tournament with a one-under showing that was good enough for a tie at seventh-place. He opened the day with a bogey followed directly by a birdie before another of each left him at even through the first nine holes. He remained even through the back-nine with a mirrored performance to stay even for the round with a 72. He added that to his first two round scores for a 215 overall.
Jake Headrick (Maryville, Tenn.) turned in his best round of the week with a two-under performance on Tuesday to tie for 21st at five-over for the tournament. The junior started the day by going four-under through the front nine with three-straight birdies early before adding another on the ninth to head into the turn. A double bogey on the 12th hole moved him to two-under and he stayed there with a pair of bogeys and birdies by the end of the day. His 70 on Tuesday pushed his three-round total to 221.
Jake Mynatt (Knoxville, Tenn.) held a share of 34th at nine-over with a 225 total. He was even by the time he reached the back nine thanks to a pair of birdies and bogeys. Three more bogeys with a birdie on 18 gave him a second-straight +2 round of 74.
Will Collins (Knoxville, Tenn.) finished his second travel team event of his career in a tie for 41st with a 227 total. The freshman was on par for eight holes through the front nine with a bogey on seven landing him at one-over heading into the afternoon. He shot two additional bogeys in the back nine to go three-over with a 75.
Keiser, ranked sixth nationally among NAIA schools, won the team title with a seven-under performance at 857. The only other team to score under par was No. 12/16 Nova Southeastern at four-under. C-N trailed the Sharks by nine shots to round out the top three.
Nova Southeastern's Juan Jose Guerra took the top medalist for the second-straight year. Sitting at nine-under with a 207, he was two shots ahead of a tie for second between Saint Leo's Alberto Castagnara and Valdosta State's Matt Anderson.
The Eagles set their sights on a second-straight week of competition as they head to the Southern Tide Classic in Greenville, S.C. on March 4 and 5.
|
Carson-Newman |
290 |
291 |
288 |
869 |
+5 |
3rd |
|
68 |
72 |
72 |
212 |
-4 |
5th |
|
|
71 |
72 |
72 |
215 |
-1 |
T-7th |
|
|
78 |
73 |
70 |
221 |
+5 |
T-21st |
|
|
77 |
74 |
74 |
225 |
+9 |
T-34th |
|
|
74 |
78 |
75 |
227 |
+11 |
T-41st |