Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
Skyhawk Classic
Men's Golf claims third place at Skyhawk Fall Classic
10/07/2014 | 12:00:00 | Men's Golf
By Tom Weber
SIUSalukis.com
The Southern Illinois University men's golf team moved up one spot during the final round of the UT-Martin Skyhawk Classic on Tuesday to claim third place in the nine-team field. The Salukis posted a tournament-best 286 team score today to finish 1-under par and just 10 strokes behind champion Alabama State.
"It was great to see us bounce back from a disappointing performance at Louisville last week," said head coach Justin Fetcho, whose squad was the only team to shoot below par in the final round. "I wanted to figure out how much heart and determination and grit these guys have, and they responded with a great week of practice leading up to this tournament, and now we have some momentum moving forward."
Wade Thompson was SIU's top finisher, placing third out of 55 golfers and recording a career-best score of 7-under par. He had one eagle and a dozen birdies during the 54-hole competition.
"His confidence level is at a high right now," Fetcho said. "He realizes how he can manage his game to give himself the best opportunity to score. He took his game plan to a new level and it's what you like to see from a senior."
Every member of Southern's team finished in the top 20, including Drew Novara, who had a team-best 70 in the final round and claimed ninth place with a tournament score of Even-par.
"I told the guys on Day One that we have to be strong one-through-eight on our roster," Fetcho explained. "This tournament shows that we do have some firepower all the way through the lineup. It was exciting to see Charles Hawn shoot a 72 today in just his second tournament, and Ryan Haxel had a 71 on Monday in his first round of the season."
The tournament was played at Paris Landing State Park in Buchanan, Tenn. on one of the signature courses of the Tennessee State Park system, a 6,685-yard, par-72 course that is part of the Tennessee Golf Trail.
SIU Individual Scores
3 Wade Thompson 71 67 71 209
T9 Drew Novara 73 73 70 216
T13 Steve Souchek 74 70 75 219
T19 Andrew Mitchell 77 72 73 222
T19 Charles Hawn 77 73 72 222
T19 Ryan Haxel 71 75 76 222 (Individual)
TEAM Scores
1 Alabama State 281 278 294 853 -11
2 UT Martin 285 280 291 856 -8
3 Southern Illinois 295 282 286 863 -1
4 Tennessee State 297 285 296 878 +14
5 Murray State 287 289 303 879 +15
6 Jackson State 293 287 300 880 +16
7 Lindsey Wilson College 296 289 305 890 +26
8 John A. Logan CC 298 297 303 898 +34
9 Bethel College TN 314 309 301 924 +60
Players Mentioned
