UCO rallies to take third in The Mule
WARRENSBURG, Mo. (April 4) – Evan Griffith and Caleb Kimmel had top-10 individual finishes to lead Central Oklahoma to a third-place showing at The Mule that wrapped up Tuesday.
Griffith closed with a 1-over-par 71 to tie for fifth at 211, while Kimmel tied for ninth at 213 after a final-round 74. The Bronchos shot 301, ending the two-day, 54-hole tournament at the 6,430-yard, par-70 Mules National Golf Club with an 866 total.
UCO was tied for 13th in the 19-team tournament after Monday’s first round before rallying in the afternoon to move into second. The lead changed hands several times during final-day play before the host Mules and Missouri Western ended up tied for the team title at 862.
Southwestern Oklahoma State placed fifth in the event led by Anders Strand in fifth with a 211. Rogers State was 13th.
Ross Taylor added a 75 for the Bronchos in finishing with a 220 total, while Bennett Baldwin shot 81-222 and Kyle Hickey 82-235. Dylan Henderson played as an individual and closed with a 71 for a 230 total.
“We didn’t play our best, but I like the way the guys competed,” said head coach Derrick Thompson. “We had a chance on the last day and that’s what you want.”
Griffith started his round on No. 1 and birdied the par-4 third before making a bogey on No. 5 and double bogey on No. 8 in shooting a two-over 37 on the front nine.
The junior birdied the par-5 10th to drop back to one-over, then reeled off four straight pars. He bogeyed No. 15, got that stroke back with a par-4 16th and finished with a pair of pars for the 71.
Kimmel also started final-round play on No. 1 and had three bogeys with a lone birdie for a front-nine 37. He birdied No. 10 to get to one-over, then had five pars and three bogeys the rest of the way for a 74.
It was the final tournament of the regular season for the Bronchos, who have seven top-six finishes in 10 events. UCO is off until going to Bolivar, Mo. April 17-19 for the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Championships.