Spartans Remain in Hunt for National Championship
7/27/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
May 24, 2007
Allendale, Mich. - The 10th-ranked USC Upstate men's golf team fought tough afternoon conditions to remain in the hunt for a national championship, finishing the third round with a 305 to slip one place into fourth place at the NCAA Division II National Championships at the 6,992-yard, par 71 The Meadows course Thursday afternoon.
Upstate heads into Friday's final round just eight strokes back of tournament leader Barry, which takes an 890 total into the final round. Peach Belt Conference foe Columbus State used a strong 299 on the day to move into second place with an 892 total over three rounds. Florida Southern, winners of 11 national championships, finished the day with a 305 and is in third place with a three-round total of 896. Upstate is fourth with an 898 total, while Washburn is fifth at 900. Another Peach Belt rival, Georgia College & State University, is sixth at 903, while the other PBC school in the national championships, Lander, dropped to a tie for 15th with a 924 total.
Upstate got itself in prime position to battle for the national championship early in the round. The Spartans got within two strokes of Barry for the team lead after going out 1-over-par as a team on the front nine. However, the scores began to creep up for nearly all of the teams on the back nine. Upstate was not immune to the rough conditions. The five Spartans golfers combined to play the back nine 25 over-par. Gaffney's Josh Gallman (pictured) was the only player to finish the back nine strongly, coming in even over the final nine holes.
Despite the troubles on the back nine, Upstate was able to put together a solid round and is still in the hunt for a national championship. Three players carded a 76 on the day, while another turned in a 77. Upstate is within six strokes of second place and two back of third.
Individually, Gallman, Baxter Culler, and Michael Lawrence each finished with 4-over-par 76 efforts on the day. Ian Schneider shot a 77, while Tyler Tucker contributed an 81. Gallman, Lawrence, and Schneider are all tied for 19th with 225 totals. Culler stands tied for 35th with a 228 total, while Tucker is tied for 62nd at 233.
Columbus State's Christian Ries shot a 1-under-par 70 to vault into the individual lead in the championships. He stands 1-over-par in the tournament with a 214 total. Teammate Andrew Georgiou is in second place at 4-over 217. Their efforts helped Columbus State move up a spot into second place entering Friday's final round.
Team Scores
1. Barry 289-297-304=890; 2. Columbus State 302-291-299=892; 3. Florida Southern 299-292-305=896; 4. USC Upstate 296-297-305=898; 5. Washburn 296-306-298=900; 6. Georgia College & State 304-297-302=903; 7. T7. Abilene Christian 306-301-299=906, Cal State Stanislaus 307-296-303=906; 9. Belmont Abbey 302-306-300=908; 10. Grand Canyon 292-305-315=912; T11. Sonoma State 303-297-317=917, Cal State San Bernardino 300-306-311=917; 13. North Alabama 301-311-306=918; 14. Cameron 298-312-309=919; T15. Fairmont State 307-314-303=924, Lander 297-310-317=924; 17. Ferris State 304-316-318=938; 18. Florida Gulf Coast 312-319-308=939; 19. Western new Mexico 305-316-321=942; 20. Le Moyne 318-310-330=958.
Upstate Individuals
T19. Josh Gallman 74-75-76=225 (+12), Michael Lawrence 75-74-76=225 (+12), Ian Schneider 75-73-77=225 (+12); T35. Baxter Culler 77-75-76=228 (+15); T62. Tyler Tucker 72-80-81=233 (+20).
