Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
Branson Creek Invitational
Men's Golf finishes third at Branson Creek Invitational
04/06/2010 | 12:00:00 | Men's Golf
April 6, 2010
By Dana Ingraham
www.SIUSalukis.com
HOLLISTER, Mo. - The Southern Illinois men's golf team fell just short of its first outright title of the season Tuesday, finishing third overall at the Branson Creek Invitational.
SIU finished the final round of 18-holes with a score of 305, putting it four strokes behind Stephen F. Austin and Western Illinois' 890 total. Stephen F. Austin came away with the team title after defeating Western in a one-hole playoff.
The Salukis third-place finish marks their best finish this season, and head coach Leroy Newton is pleased with the progress his team has made thus far.
"I am extremely proud of the way we played in this tournament," said Newton. "We are moving toward the goals that we set for ourselves at the beginning of the season and it shows in how well we have been playing lately."
Patrick Scheil continued to shine on the course for Southern, as he captured his first top-five finish this spring. The senior ended in fourth place out of 54 competitors with a 54-hole score of 219.
Jordan Cox finished in the 20th spot with three rounds in the 70s with a total of 226. Jeffrey Miller was one place behind, tying for 21st at 228.
As an individual, Clay Yates tied for 25th place for his best finish as a Saluki, also carding all three rounds in the 70s and finishing with a total score of 229.
The senior-freshman tandem of Blake Driskell and Jake Erickson finished tied for 27th place carding final scores of 230, while Ryan Hudson shot 79 across the board totaling 237.
Although SIU was unable to capture the top spot as a team, it finished the highest of any Missouri Valley Conference school in the tournament. The Salukis' final mark of 894 was well above Missouri State (909), Northern Iowa (911), Creighton (917) and Bradley (925), giving Newton and his team a boost of confidence with just one tournament remaining before the MVC Championships April 26-27.
"Every tournament we have had someone different step up, and we are only going to get better as we keep playing," said Newton. "Each time out on the course we expect bigger and better things of ourselves. We have some time to sort things out before conference play, but I am proud of the way the guys are playing."
Southern will have one more opportunity to adjust its game before the MVC Championships when it travels to Jonesboro, Ark. to compete in the ASU Red Wolf Classic April 12-13.
Players Mentioned
