MILWAUKEE - The Carthage College men's golf team secured a fifth-place finish at the Morningstar Masters, hosted by Wisconsin Lutheran. Competing over two days, the Firebirds posted rounds of 293 and 306 to finish with a total score of 599 (+23). Highlighting the weekend was an unforgettable moment from Brett Vandergrift, who recorded a hole-in-one on the 11th hole, providing a major spark for the Firebirds and marking one of the standout achievements of the tournament.


Nick Barry led the Firebirds, carding rounds of 70 and 75 for a total of 145 (+1) and placing 12th. Vandergrift followed in 25th place, scoring rounds of 74 and 77 for a total of 151 (+7). Tayt Hager scored 73 and 79, totaling 152 (+8) for a 31st-place finish. In 34th place, Logan Westman carded 78 and 75 for a total score of 153 (+9). Rounding out the Firebirds, Ethan Frasch finished in 47th place with rounds of 76 and 81 for a total score of 157 (+13).  

Three Firebirds competed individually, led by James Tyrrell in 15th place. Tyrrell carded rounds of 72 and 75 for a total of 147 (+3). Joey Luna followed in 23rd place, recording rounds of 76 and 74 for a total of 150 (+6). In 57th place, Zachary Ramos card rounds of 78 and 83 for a total score of 61 (+17). 


"As frequently happens in two-day tournaments, we played very well on day 1, and very average on day 2," said head coach Jay Christiansen. "We simply didn't sustain the focus needed to hang with some of the best teams in the Midwest. Finishing a solid 5th out of 12 in a strong tournament isn't bad, but the gap between the top 4 and us got away from us on day 2. Aurora and Dubuque are legitimate national powers; in last year's NCAA Championship performed impressively well, and I honestly think they are both better this year. Add Lake Forest, who has their best team ever, and we got beat by really good teams. However, our talent level is a bit better than what our scorecards show. We simply make too many unforced errors, and our putting just isn't consistent enough yet. We are going to have to work extremely hard in these next two weeks to build some momentum before the CCIW Championship. Confidence to beat the best is earned, so we need to prove something to ourselves in our next few invitationals."


The Firebirds will be back in action on Thursday, April 16, at the CCIW Preview. For more information, visit our athletics.carthage.edu.