KENOSHA, Wis. - One might have expected a modicum of regression from a team that lost four of its five top players from a year ago - all of whom land among some of the greatest in Carthage men's golf history in regards to scoring average. The 2022-2023 Firebirds failed to see things that way, though; despite the high-end talent that graduated, Carthage's confidence never wavered. The younger, newer-look men's golf team at 2001 Alford Park Drive scrapped and clawed its way to a fifth-consecutive second-place finish in a very talented College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW).
The new-look Firebirds got off to a tremendous start in the fall, winning the weather-shortened Culver's Edgewood Fall Classic in early September. Fifth-year senior
Jared Christensen was sensational, taking second of all individuals at the classic after shooting a 72 at Glen Erin Golf Club.
Carthage hosted its only event of the 2022-2023 season - the Carthage Fall Classic - just a week later, taking sixth out of 20 teams. The Firebirds shot an impressive 600 over both days. Staying in Southeast Wisconsin, Carthage took part in Wisconsin Lutheran College's Fall Invitational in Mukwonago the following weekend. Pacing the Firebirds again were Christensen and Lilly, who finished in the top 25 at the classic as Carthage took seventh as a team.
In the first conference event of the year, Carthage took fifth at the CCIW Preview in late September. Lilly shot a 75 to finish in the upper-quartile of golfers in Yorkville (T-14). Mere days later, and after tying for first after day one, Carthage took third of 27 programs at the Midwest Region Classic in Kansasville, Wisconsin. The team's fifth-year leader,
Jared Christensen, was superb at Brighton Dale; Christensen placed second for the second time in the fall after putting up a career-low 67 on day one, and was followed by strong performances from
Alex Lilly (T-19) and
Sam Nolan (T-23). The Firebirds closed the fall slate at Grand Geneva for UW-Stout's Fall Classic, taking sixth with the help of an even score from
Alex Lilly. The 2021 All-CCIW golfer shot a 71 on day one and followed it with a 72 on day two to pace Carthage.
To open up the spring schedule, Carthage made the trek down to Richardson, Texas for the Texas Cup - hosted by UT-Dallas. Though the Firebirds placed 14th, the competitive field served Carthage well.
Tanner Angelstad (T-13) and
Alex Lilly (T-19) placed in the top 20 to lead the Firebirds in the warmth of Texas. Upon its return to the Midwest, the men's golf team participated in a pair of events in Oak Brook, Illinois. The Firebirds finished just a stroke off of first at Elmhurst's Bluejay Spring Invite with the help of Lilly (T-4) and Christensen (T-7), and followed that excellent showing with another impressive one at the Illinois Wesleyan Spring Invite.
A pair of top-five finishes in Vernon Hills and Mukwonago highlight a team peaking at the right time, and a solid showing in Decatur, Illinois finalized the regular season slate. To close the season,
Alex Lilly shot a season-low 70 at Millikin's Take Back the Night Challenge while
Colton Sigel set a new career-low with a 71. A mere nine strokes separated the ninth-place Firebirds and the fifth-place Illinois Wesleyan Titans.
With the regular season coming to an end after weather forced the cancelation of Carthage's Firebird Spring Invite, only the CCIW Men's Golf Championship remained. Despite four-consecutive second-place finishes, and with the losses of a number of talented Firebirds in mind, it was fair to question how Carthage would stack up at this year's championship. Carthage quickly answered those questions - firing off a team score of 293 to conclude day one in second place and within shouting distance of the ever-formidable Illinois Wesleyan University Titans. Carthage was one of two teams to stay under 300, and led third-place Millikin by seven strokes after 18 holes of golf.
Colton Sigel shot a career-low 70 on day one to lead Carthage and gain sole possession of fourth place.
The Firebirds' performance dipped slightly on day two, allowing the Big Blue of Millikin to climb to second in the standings. Carthage shot a still-solid 309 on Friday and remained well-ahead of fourth-place Elmhurst.
Tanner Angelstad, who had been playing progressively-better golf heading into the championship, led Carthage on day two; the sophomore sat in fifth-place and was only a handful of strokes above par (+6).
On the championship-defining day three, Carthage was able to vault back in front of Millikin to secure its fifth-consecutive second-place finish in the CCIW. The Firebirds shot 302 as a team to finish the tournament just a hair-over 900 (902), and were led once again by Angelstad. The ascending-golfer earned Carthage's lone all-conference selection after tying for seventh (+11), though the final day of golf from
Alex Lilly shouldn't go unrecognized. After uncharacteristically scuffling on days one and two, the sophomore rebounded in a big way to close out the championship - shooting a 70 to climb the individual leaderboard all the way to a 12th-place finish.
With a more inexperienced roster in 2022-2023, the Carthage Firebirds men's golf team found its groove late in the year and found a way to stave off any potential regression. A balanced attack throughout the year - highlighted by a number of Firebirds leading the team at various events - displayed the resolve, resilience, and comradery possessed by Carthage's men's golf program. The team is now set up very favorably heading into next year, and should once again compete at the top of the conference.
- 9/2 | Culver's Edgewood College Fall Classic | 1st of 21 (day two canceled)
- 9/9-9/10 | Carthage Fall Classic | 6th of 20
- 9/17-9/18 | Wisconsin Lutheran College Invitational | 7th of 14
- 9/21 | CCIW Preview | 5th of 13
- 9/25-9/26 | Midwest Region Classic | 3rd of 27
- 10/2-10/3 | UW-Stout Grand Geneva Invite | 6th of 21
- 3/19-3/20 | Texas Cup | 14th of 14
- 4/6 | Bluejay Spring Invite | 2nd of 12
- 4/7-4/8 | Illinois Wesleyan Spring Invite | 11th of 37
- 4/14 | Foresters Spring Invite | 4th of 19
- 4/15 | Wisconsin Lutheran College Spring Invitational | 2nd of 12
- 4/21-4/22 | Take Back the Night Challenge | 9th of 18
- 5/4-5/6 | 2023 CCIW Men's Golf Championship | 2nd of 9
Award Winners
- Sophomore golfer Tanner Angelstad was Carthage's lone all-conference honoree this season, as Angelstad tied for seventh at this year's CCIW Championship in Yorkville. The All-CCIW honor is the first of Angelstad's young career.
- Junior Brett VanDeWostine, from Erie, Illinois, received the CCIW RESPECT Award. VanDeWostine earned the distinction for his consistent displays of responsibility, enthusiasm, service, pride, excellence, collaboration, and trust.
- Sophomore Alex Lilly and veteran golfer Jared Christensen shared Carthage men's golf's team most valuable performer honors at this year's annual Embers Awards. Christensen led the Firebirds in average this season (74.94) while Lilly trailed right behind the senior (75.05).
- Junior Cole Hanson was named the team's scholar-athlete award winner at The Embers, highlighting his excellent work in the classroom this academic year.
Lowest Average
- 1. Illinois Wesleyan University - 865 (+13)
- 2. Carthage College - 904 (+52)
- 3. Millikin University - 911 (+59)
- 4. Wheaton College (Ill.) - 936 (+84)
- T-5. North Central College (Ill.) - 938 (+86)
- T-5. Elmhurst University - 938 (+86)
- 7. North Park University - 946 (+94)
- 8. Augustana College (Ill.) - 954 (+102)
- 9. Carroll University (Wis.) - 980 (+128)
"Because we graduated four of our top five last year, and because we graduated some great leaders, I was very curious as to what this season would look like," acknowledge Carthage Firebirds director of golf and head men's golf coach
Jay Christiansen. "I knew we had talent, but I was worried about maturity, I was worried about leadership, and I was worried about young guys taking the step of being as committed to their game as is needed by seriously competitive college golfers."
"We came right out of the gates and won the Edgewood Invite at Glen Erin last Labor Day weekend - against a pretty deep field - with our guys immediately proving they were ready for this. Now, over the course of the fall season and the spring season we had a few youthful blips, but overall, true leaders developed, guys were pushing themselves hard while pushing their teammates to keep up, and our chemistry was exemplary. We had a roster of 16 really good people, guys I love being around, guys who were excellent teammates, and guys I am quite proud to call Carthage Firebirds."
"Although from 1-16, each of our guys expanded their skill level, improved the ever-important mental side of golf, impressed me with their work ethic, and proved to be great teammates, I thought
three young men in particular stood out.
Fifth-year senior Jared Christensen challenged himself to be a leader, challenged himself to start playing at the level he was capable of, and really, really had a great year. Being the one senior to take advantage of the COVID year of extra eligibility, Jared came back with a mission, and he went out and did it.
Sophomore Alex Lilly earned all-conference honors as a first-year student-athlete and was our one returner from last year's top five, so he and I both had some similar expectations for him - and more than anything, it was a matter of managing the mental grind of golf. Alex is very dedicated, works hard at his game, uses his intellect to really study the game, and has a high level of natural ability, so sometimes expectations can become a barrier and can make the mental side of golf even more challenging. I felt his growth this year was exemplary, and although it didn't always show up on the scorecard, I think he is developing the personality needed to really utilize his natural abilities, and his game is getting ready to meet his expectations. I also think he is developing his understanding of how to be a positive leader, and as a result will become an even bigger asset to our program.
Sophomore Tanner Angelstad spent some time in the top five during his first year, but struggled to find the consistency to shoot the kinds of scores that matched his goals. He had a habit of playing very strong college golf on eight to ten holes, but each round seemed to be sabotaged by a stretch of four to five rough holes. When he came back this past fall, he kind of fell back into some of that same pattern. Sometime this spring, he seemed to find a little different maturity, he seemed to get a bit more focused, and he seemed to start to change some his own personal expectations. Gradually, his scores started to reflect his personal growth, and then, under the pressure of the CCIW Conference Championship, he puts three very strong rounds together, leads us to our second place finish, and earn himself a spot on the CCIW All-Conference team. With two more college seasons ahead of him, if Tanner can find the drive to keep the new maturity as a focus, I think there is a very high level golfer hiding in there."
"Although we are very proud to finish in second place in a very good golf conference, and since it wouldn't surprise us if Illinois Wesleyan once again goes out and contends for the National Championship once again, we know finding a way to take first place in the CCIW next year is gonna take a pretty big step up. With only Jared graduating from our top five, with a number of other guys on our roster with goals to jump into the top five, and with a very big and pretty talented group of golfers coming in through our recruiting class, I am very excited to see how things shake out this fall. We have some lofty goals, and these athletes have a three-month summer to commit to their game and commit to their fitness, to see what they bring back to campus come late August. We have a roster full of excellent young men, but outside of being really good people, I know they have some dreams of excelling at a higher level. I truly look forward to how we mesh with a new mix of guys next fall, how each of them earn their roles, and ultimately if we have what it takes to make another big step up."
