Patriot golfers come out swinging in Florida nationals

By Jeremy Cotham and Clay Ihlo

Sports Writers

PORT SAINT LUCIE, Fla. – After two rounds of the NCAA Div. III National Golf Championships, the Patriots men’s golf team looks like it belongs among the nation’s best.

In its first appearance at this tournament, the men’s team finished the first two rounds in fifth place with a score of 17-over par, only 18 strokes behind first place University of La Verne (Calif.).

The Patriots women’s golf team finished in 18th place out of 21 teams after round one and remained in 18th place after round two.

University of La Verne (Calif.) led the men’s side of the tournament after two rounds and were the only team under-par. La Verne shot a 283 (-5) on Thursday to move into first place with a two-round overall score of 575, which is 1-under par.

Patriots' sophomore Matt Stephens teeing off on the 18th hole toward the PGA Village Clubhouse during the second round of the NCAA Div III National Golf Tournament in Port St. Lucie, Fla. The Patriots are currently in fifth place after two rounds. Talon photo by Clay Ihlo

Methodist University, who led by 12 strokes after round one, fell down to second place after shooting a 303 (+15) in round two.

Coach King Campbell said the men had a rough start, which hurt their second round performance.

“We did not get off to as great of a start Thursday and had to fight our way back,” Campbell said. “Brandon (Ellis) had the best comeback, shooting a 41 on the front nine and then a 34 on the back nine. Shooting a 302 today is not what we wanted, but we are positioned to place well. Overall, I am pleased with the first two days from the guys.”

Ellis and Brian Jennings led the men’s team in the second round by shooting a 75 (+3) followed by Matt Stephens and Patrick Palmer at 76 (+4) and Spencer Ellis at 78 (+6).

Ellis started the second round at 5-over par through the first seven holes and managed to shoot a 2-under over the next 11 holes.

Stephens, after bogeying the first hole, got three birdies in a row on holes three and four to put him at 2-under par. After that, Stephens knocked in only one more birdie along with three bogeys and two double-bogeys.

In the individual placements, Ellis is the highest of the men, finishing in a tie for 14th place with a score of 2-over par. Stephens is the only other Patriot in the top 25 after ending with a two-round score of 3-over par, which puts him in a tie for 19th place.

In the first round, the team shot a 291, which was 3-over par and the team was in third place after day one.

The men were led in round one by Ellis and Stephens, who both shot a 71 (-1). Jennings was next with a 74 (+2), followed by Palmer with a 75 (+3).

“Everybody played well and shooting a 291 (team score) was a very good start to the tournament,” Campbell said.

In round one on Wednesday, the men played the Dye course at the PGA Village, which Campbell said is the more difficult of the two. However, on Thursday, the men played on the Ryder course and got a higher score than they did on the harder course.

The men’s tournament, which started out with 37 teams, had a cut after two rounds. The top 23 teams advanced to the last two rounds.

The Patriots had no problem making it through the cut but their fellow conference foes were not so lucky. The University of Mary-Hardin Baylor, who beat the Patriots at the conference tournament, finished in a tie for 25th place and went home early.

On the women’s side, they are playing the Wanamaker course all four days and there was no cut for the women’s tournament.

In the first round, Lisha Nigh led the women’s team with an 84. Katie Harris was next on the team with a score of 85, followed by Jennifer King at 86, Jordon Woodruff at 89 and Amber Grounds at 92.

“The girls were a little nervous and got off to a rough start in the first round,” Campbell said. “Their scores were consistent with what they’ve been shooting the past few tournaments, but the level of competition is obviously higher here.”

On day two, the women finished two strokes worse than the first round score but they still managed to stay in 18th place.

The women were once again led by Harris, who finished with a team-best round of 79 (+7). Harris cut her first-day total by six strokes despite making any birdies.

Grounds finished with the next best round for the women, shooting an 87, followed by Woodruff and King with scores of 90 and Nigh with a 92.

“Katie played awesome and had an outstanding round, had three scores in the 90s. I think part of that might be fatigue because this is the fourth straight day they have played, including practices,” Campbell said. “Their scores are still reflecting what they normally have been shooting all season. However, I expect the women to play better the next two rounds.”