Wrapping up their fall campaign, the golf team played in the Golfweek Division III Fall Invitational in Sandestin, Fla., from Oct. 13-15. They posted a score of 899 (299, 301, 299) for the tournament, finishing 15th of 18 teams in the course of the three-day, 54-hole event. The tournament was held at the 6,505 yard, par-71 Raven Golf Club.
Head Coach John Sjoberg wasn't quite satisfied with the Eagles' performance, citing the natural inconsistencies of the game as a reason for their low finish.
"Golfweek did a fantastic job hosting the Invitational, and it was a successful tournament, but unfortunately we weren't able to play competitively in the field," Sjoberg said. "The team lacked consistency, but that's the game of golf in many aspects. It's a tough game, and it's a tough game to conquer."
The team did put together some strong individual performances. Senior Johnathan Chen led the team with a combined three-over effort of 216 (72, 73, 71), good for a 10th-place tie in a 90-player field. Senior Will Roth followed with a score of 227 (81, 73, 73). After bouncing back from a rough first round, Roth put in solid second- and third-round scores to finish in a 56th place tie.
"The course for the Invitational was in great shape and the field was probably the best we will face all year," sophomore Jonathan Gerrard said. "We need to work to improve during the offseason if we are going to compete with the top teams such as Oglethorpe and Methodist."
Junior Alex Wunderlich commended Chen and Roth's rounds, noting that their scores helped the team stay motivated. Wunderlich carded a score of 229 (75, 77, 77).
"As a whole, we're still not performing at the level we would like to, but a very disappointing fall has given us a lot of clear cut areas for improvement and a good wake-up call to put in serious work in the offseason," Wunderlich said. "The course was in good shape and the teams there were very competitive, so mediocre play as a team just didn't cut it."
Senior Alec Berens finished the tournament with a score of 232 (76, 78, 78), and Gerrard rounded out the team scores with 238 (76, 84, 78).
"We had pretty high expectations going into this season, and these expectations were not met," Berens said. "We all struggled with various aspects of our game that held the team back. I think we are very close to being where we want and with a lot of hard work this offseason we should be able to get right back on track in the spring.
Oglethorpe took home first place, playing an impressive five-under as a team (847) after the three-round event. LaGrange College followed in second place, 19 shots behind with a team score of 866. St. John Fisher College (N.Y.) rounded out third place with a score of 868.
Despite not playing to their full potential during their fall campaign, the Eagles are optimistic about their spring season.
"We had a short, intense stretch of golf these past four weeks," Sjoberg said. "Now we'll have a chance to relax and refresh and come back with a game plan in February to take one shot at a time and continue to improve."
With three seniors in the top five lineup looking at their final campaign, the pressure is on to perform.
"I know I speak for all the seniors when I say we're really look forward to concluding our last seasons as Eagles on a high note," Chen said.
With the conclusion of their fall season, the Eagles will return to action in March of next spring at the Callaway Gardens Resort in Pine Mountain, Ga.
– By Seanette Ting
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