SWOSU, UCO in hunt for top-four finish in Super Regional

May 9, 2017May 9, 2017 Ken MacLeod

AXTELL, Neb. – Phenomenal competition highlighted the opening round of the Central/Midwest Super Regional on Monday as 13 teams carded a final score below par at Awarii Dunes Golf Course in Nebraska. Southwestern Oklahoma State University rode a 5-under 67 by Great American Conference Player of the Year Stefan Idstam into sixth place. Idstam is tied for third place after the first 18 holes.

Kason Cook had the second-best score for the Bulldogs on Monday, carding a 2-under 70, a great round that places him tied for 22nd on the leaderboard. Joby Gray shot an even-par 72 and he’s tied for 47th, while Marques Gomez fired a 73 (+1) to sit tied for 62nd. Seth Overstreet rounded out the scoring with a 78 (+6) and he’s in a share of 97th place.

Central Missouri has set the pace with a team total of 272 strokes (-16), which has the Mules on top of the leaderboard by seven strokes over Lindenwood. While they are currently in sixth place, SWOSU is just three shots back of second place heading into Tuesday’s second round. The tee times flip for the second round, meaning the Bulldogs will hit the course starting at 8:35 am on Tuesday morning paired with Ferris State and Saginaw Valley State.

Alexander Hughes fired a 3-under-par 69 to pace Central Oklahoma. The Bronchos were tied for seventh in the team standings despite shooting a 5-under 283 at the 7,001-yard, par-72 Awarii Dunes Golf Course.

UCO begins second-round play at 7:45 a.m. in the three-day, 54-hole tournament. The top four teams and first two individuals not on those teams advance to the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championships, set for May 22-26 in Kissimmee, Fla.

Hughes’ 69 led the Bronchos, who also got a 70 from Eli Armstrong. Nick Pierce and Wesley Jacksonboth shot even-par 72s, while Cody Troutman had a 75.

For Northeastern State, Tate Williamson (Tulsa, Okla.) and Ty Shelnutt (Tulsa, Okla.) both shot a 1-under 71, but the RiverHawks are in 18th place after the first round.

Shelnutt and Williamson both scored a 71 with five birdies for a 33rd place tie. Navid Majidizadeh (Tulsa, Okla.) shot 75, Marc Johnson (Plano, Texas) had an 80, and Griffen Matthias (Ankeny, Iowa) was one shot back of Johnson’s score.

“We have been living on the edge all year with our four and five bags,” said head coach Scott Varner. “Tate and Ty have been rock solid all year. Navid has had his moments and between the three of them, they are why we qualified for the NCAA’s. Occasionally this year we got some 4 bag help, and when we did we competed to win tournaments.””As we say in college golf for years, you don’t win it in the first round but you can sure lose it. It will take a minor miracle to get in the top four and advance, Tate and Ty could also make it individually with two very solid rounds.”

Central Missouri leads the 20 team field with a 272 in the opening round and holds a seven shot lead over Lindenwood.

Northeastern State will have a tee time starting at 12:15 p.m. on the back nine for the second round on Tuesday.

		To Par	R1	Total
1	Central Missouri	-16	272	272
2	Lindenwood	-9	279	279
3	Saginaw Valley State	-8	280	280
T4	Grand Valley State	-7	281	281
T4	Bellarmine	-7	281	281
6	Southwestern Ok. St.	-6	282	282
T7	Ferris State	-5	283	283
T7	Central Oklahoma	-5	283	283
T7	Henderson State	-5	283	283
T7	Indianapolis	-5	283	283
11	Tiffin	-4	284	284
12	Missouri – St. Louis	-3	285	285
13	Wayne State – MI	-1	287	287
14	Arkansas Tech	+1	289	289
15	Minnesota State	+2	290	290
16	Harding	+6	294	294
17	Washburn	+7	295	295
18	Northeastern State	+9	297	297
19	Trevecca Nazarene	+11	299	299
20	Maryville	+15	303	303

Central/Midwest Super Regional Championships

Axtell, Neb. (Awarii Dunes Golf Course)

Monday, May 8, 2017

First Round Results