Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Monday, May 13
Louisville, Ky.
Southern Illinois University
vs
NCAA Regionals | Louisville, Ky.
Men's Golf finishes 10th at NCAA Regionals
05/15/2019 | 2:06:00 | Men's Golf
Peyton Wilhoit (-2) placed 12th overall, marking the best finish for an SIU golfer in an NCAA postseason event in school history.
The Southern Illinois men's golf team completed its season on Wednesday by moving up another spot in the standings at the NCAA Regionals in Louisville, finishing 10th out of 13 teams. Saluki senior Peyton Wilhoit (-2) placed 12th overall out of 75 competitors, marking the best finish for an SIU golfer in an NCAA postseason event in school history.
Oklahoma State (-14), the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, overcame a seven-stroke deficit on the final day to slip past Auburn (-10) for the Regional title. Baylor (-7), Louisville (+7) and North Florida (+8) also advanced to the NCAA Championships from the Louisville Regional.
The tournament featured nine teams ranked in the Top 50 by Golfstat. The Salukis (+25) finished ahead of one those ranked teams — No. 35 Arkansas State (+26) — and also bested New Mexico (+29) and Jacksonville State (+32).
After shooting a team score of 301 in the first round, Southern hit its stride in rounds two and three with a combined score of 576 — which was the sixth-best score in the field for the final two days.
SIU was one of four teams to improve its team score in each round of the three-day tournament with scores of +17 on Day One, +5 on Day Two, and +3 today.Â
"I can't imagine another team exceeded their pre-tournament ranking more than we did," said Fetcho, whose squad was seeded last heading into the tournament. "We proved a lot of people wrong outside of our program, who thought we would not even be competitive. We wanted to move on to the championships, but we're definitely able to leave with our heads held high."
Wilhoit completed his Saluki career as the most decorated golfer in school history. He was a four-time All-Conference pick, a three-time NCAA Regional qualifier, a 10-time MVC Golfer of the Week, and the 2018 MVC Golfer of the Year. He won two tournaments, finished in the Top-10 a dozen times, and capped off his remarkable career by setting the school single-season record for stroke average.Â
"He has re-written the records books," Fetcho said. "I'm not an emotional guy, but it was emotional for me on the 18th hole to know his career here at SIU is done. He's meant so much to this program and will go down as arguably the best golfer at SIU."
After bogeying the first two holes today, Wilhoit closed out his final round in maroon with three birdies and 13 pars to finish 2-under par for the tournament. He took added satisfaction from finishing ahead of Oklahoma State's Matthew Wolff (-1) — the No. 1 ranked collegiate player in the nation.
"That's a nice accomplishment, but it's not about trying to beat certain guys," Wilhoit said. "I try to focus on myself. I really didn't swing too well in this tournament. I had to make myself stay patient because I knew it wasn't going in to be easy, try to limit my mistakes and put the ball in the right spot. I did that for the most part."
Also playing in the final tournament of their SIU careers were seniors Luke Gannon (+10) and Hunter York (+16). Gannon's accomplishments were not far behind Wilhoit's, as the two golfers will forever be remembered as the duo that put Saluki men's golf on the national map. Gannon was a two-time All-Conference pick and advanced to the NCAA Regionals twice.Â
"Peyton and Luke committed here when we had no history or tradition, just a vision of what we wanted to accomplish," Fetcho said. "They both embody what you think of as a student-athlete."
York joined the team as a transfer from John A. Logan College and made an instant impact with three Top 10 finishes in 2018 and two more this year. He delivered his best performance at the 2019 MVC Championships, finishing 10th overall, including a clutch 4-under par in the final round.
"This program will strongly miss Peyton, Luke and Hunter for what they've done for us," Fetcho continued. "They leave a legacy here they can be proud of and gives our younger guys something to shoot for."
SIU returns Matthis Besard (+6) and Frankie Thomas (+11) next season off of its NCAA Regional team. Besard tied for 40th place at the NCAA Regional and had a sensational freshman year, winning one tournament and finishing in the Top 10 three times. Thomas, who will be a senior next year, had his best round of the Regional with four birdies on the back nine today to card an Even-par round.
"Matt was in the lineup for every tournament, gained a ton of experience in his first season and grew up fast," Fetcho said. "Frankie will take over a senior leadership role next season, and I know that he's seen exactly how we wanted to send seniors off, and he won't want anything different for himself next year. We have tough holes to fill, but with the guys coming back and new guys coming in, the future looks bright."
Looking back on the 2018-19 season, Fetcho said the team's accomplishments were a testament to their hard work in practice — sessions that he called "focused and demanding."
"Look at what they accomplished this year," he marveled. "I'd find it hard to believe there's a team in the history of Saluki Golf that can say they've had a better year than these guys have."
Louisville Regional Final Team Scores
1 Oklahoma State  278 283 277 838 -14
2 Auburn 276 277 289 842 -10
3 Baylor 280 288 277 845 -7
4 Louisville 280 291 288 859 +7
5 North Florida 292 285 283 860 +8
6 West Virginia 286 293 283 862 +10
7 Mississippi State 294 291 281 866 +14
8 Iowa State 288 282 297 867 +15
9 Arizona 287 291 291 869 +17
10 Southern Illinois  301 289 287 877 +25
11 Arkansas State 295 290 293 878 +26
12 New Mexico 302 291 288 881 +29
13 Jacksonville State  300 297 289 886 +34
SIU Individuals
T12Â Â Â Peyton Wilhoit (1)Â Â Â 72Â Â Â 69Â Â Â 70Â Â Â 211
T40Â Â Â Matthis Besard (3)Â Â Â 75Â Â Â 70Â Â Â 74Â Â Â 219
T50Â Â Â Luke Gannon (2)Â Â Â 77Â Â Â 74Â Â Â 72Â Â Â 223
T55Â Â Â Frankie Thomas (5)Â Â Â 77Â Â Â 76Â Â Â 71Â Â Â 224
T65Â Â Â Hunter York (4)Â Â Â 78Â Â Â 76Â Â Â 75Â Â Â 229
Oklahoma State (-14), the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, overcame a seven-stroke deficit on the final day to slip past Auburn (-10) for the Regional title. Baylor (-7), Louisville (+7) and North Florida (+8) also advanced to the NCAA Championships from the Louisville Regional.
The tournament featured nine teams ranked in the Top 50 by Golfstat. The Salukis (+25) finished ahead of one those ranked teams — No. 35 Arkansas State (+26) — and also bested New Mexico (+29) and Jacksonville State (+32).
After shooting a team score of 301 in the first round, Southern hit its stride in rounds two and three with a combined score of 576 — which was the sixth-best score in the field for the final two days.
SIU was one of four teams to improve its team score in each round of the three-day tournament with scores of +17 on Day One, +5 on Day Two, and +3 today.Â
"I can't imagine another team exceeded their pre-tournament ranking more than we did," said Fetcho, whose squad was seeded last heading into the tournament. "We proved a lot of people wrong outside of our program, who thought we would not even be competitive. We wanted to move on to the championships, but we're definitely able to leave with our heads held high."
Wilhoit completed his Saluki career as the most decorated golfer in school history. He was a four-time All-Conference pick, a three-time NCAA Regional qualifier, a 10-time MVC Golfer of the Week, and the 2018 MVC Golfer of the Year. He won two tournaments, finished in the Top-10 a dozen times, and capped off his remarkable career by setting the school single-season record for stroke average.Â
"He has re-written the records books," Fetcho said. "I'm not an emotional guy, but it was emotional for me on the 18th hole to know his career here at SIU is done. He's meant so much to this program and will go down as arguably the best golfer at SIU."
After bogeying the first two holes today, Wilhoit closed out his final round in maroon with three birdies and 13 pars to finish 2-under par for the tournament. He took added satisfaction from finishing ahead of Oklahoma State's Matthew Wolff (-1) — the No. 1 ranked collegiate player in the nation.
"That's a nice accomplishment, but it's not about trying to beat certain guys," Wilhoit said. "I try to focus on myself. I really didn't swing too well in this tournament. I had to make myself stay patient because I knew it wasn't going in to be easy, try to limit my mistakes and put the ball in the right spot. I did that for the most part."
Also playing in the final tournament of their SIU careers were seniors Luke Gannon (+10) and Hunter York (+16). Gannon's accomplishments were not far behind Wilhoit's, as the two golfers will forever be remembered as the duo that put Saluki men's golf on the national map. Gannon was a two-time All-Conference pick and advanced to the NCAA Regionals twice.Â
"Peyton and Luke committed here when we had no history or tradition, just a vision of what we wanted to accomplish," Fetcho said. "They both embody what you think of as a student-athlete."
York joined the team as a transfer from John A. Logan College and made an instant impact with three Top 10 finishes in 2018 and two more this year. He delivered his best performance at the 2019 MVC Championships, finishing 10th overall, including a clutch 4-under par in the final round.
"This program will strongly miss Peyton, Luke and Hunter for what they've done for us," Fetcho continued. "They leave a legacy here they can be proud of and gives our younger guys something to shoot for."
SIU returns Matthis Besard (+6) and Frankie Thomas (+11) next season off of its NCAA Regional team. Besard tied for 40th place at the NCAA Regional and had a sensational freshman year, winning one tournament and finishing in the Top 10 three times. Thomas, who will be a senior next year, had his best round of the Regional with four birdies on the back nine today to card an Even-par round.
"Matt was in the lineup for every tournament, gained a ton of experience in his first season and grew up fast," Fetcho said. "Frankie will take over a senior leadership role next season, and I know that he's seen exactly how we wanted to send seniors off, and he won't want anything different for himself next year. We have tough holes to fill, but with the guys coming back and new guys coming in, the future looks bright."
Looking back on the 2018-19 season, Fetcho said the team's accomplishments were a testament to their hard work in practice — sessions that he called "focused and demanding."
"Look at what they accomplished this year," he marveled. "I'd find it hard to believe there's a team in the history of Saluki Golf that can say they've had a better year than these guys have."
Louisville Regional Final Team Scores
1 Oklahoma State  278 283 277 838 -14
2 Auburn 276 277 289 842 -10
3 Baylor 280 288 277 845 -7
4 Louisville 280 291 288 859 +7
5 North Florida 292 285 283 860 +8
6 West Virginia 286 293 283 862 +10
7 Mississippi State 294 291 281 866 +14
8 Iowa State 288 282 297 867 +15
9 Arizona 287 291 291 869 +17
10 Southern Illinois  301 289 287 877 +25
11 Arkansas State 295 290 293 878 +26
12 New Mexico 302 291 288 881 +29
13 Jacksonville State  300 297 289 886 +34
SIU Individuals
T12Â Â Â Peyton Wilhoit (1)Â Â Â 72Â Â Â 69Â Â Â 70Â Â Â 211
T40Â Â Â Matthis Besard (3)Â Â Â 75Â Â Â 70Â Â Â 74Â Â Â 219
T50Â Â Â Luke Gannon (2)Â Â Â 77Â Â Â 74Â Â Â 72Â Â Â 223
T55Â Â Â Frankie Thomas (5)Â Â Â 77Â Â Â 76Â Â Â 71Â Â Â 224
T65Â Â Â Hunter York (4)Â Â Â 78Â Â Â 76Â Â Â 75Â Â Â 229
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
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