LAKE GENEVA - The Carthage College men's golf team earned a 10th-place finish at The Grand Intercollegiate, hosted at Grand Geneva Resort in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, on Sunday and Monday. The Firebirds posted rounds of 310 and 292 for a total score of 602 (+34).
The Carthage first team was led by Brett Vandergrift, with a tie at 26th place, carding 148 (+6). Nick Barry tied for 30th place, scoring a 149 (+7). James Trachsel scored 152 (+10) for a tie at 49th place. Ethan Frasch carded 157 (+15) for 72nd place. James Tyrrell tied at 87th place, scoring a 160 (+18).
The Carthage second team was led by Elliott Leibham, scoring 154 (+12) and a tie at 62nd place. Alek Lechuga took 82nd place (tie), scoring 159 (+17). Joey Luna carded a 160 (+18) for a tied place finish of 87. Dallas Torres and Jack Crispo scored 161 (+19) for a tie at 90th place.
The Firebirds had four athletes compete individually. Tayt Hager tied at 44th place with a score of 151 (+9). Conor Fayard carded 159 (+17) for a tie at 82nd place. Ryan Jermier and Jacob Jenkins tied for 96th place, scoring a 163 (+21).
"It is an honor to be invited to play in a great tournament like this, and you know the competition is going to be as good as we've seen", said head coach
Jay Christiansen. "I think sometimes the anticipation to get out there on a fantastic course against the best can get in the way, and I thought that happened. On Day 1, we played nervously and tightly rather than relaxed and aggressively. After that rough start, we came back and played a solid round on Day 2, shooting a tad better than our average, and that was without anyone having a really good round. Typically, in team golf competitions, you need someone to go low if you are gonna flirt with a great score, and we were just solid across the board. Although the weather is still fantastic, the second half of our season is winding down. We need to take advantage of a few more weeks of practice to carry us into the off-season, so when we kick back into gear in March, we are ready to take that next step that eluded us this fall. We have some very talented young men, and a ton of competition within the team to grab some of the top spots, so it will be very interesting to see how that shakes out."
