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March 13, 2007
Jacksonville, Fla. - Wildcats men's golf made a statement they are certainly ready to back-up this week as they took home second place honors in the annual North/South Men's Intercollegiate Tournament held in nearby Jacksonville, Fla. The event was hosted by Butler University out of Indianapolis, Ind. Bethune-Cookman University men's golf is about training and winning, and that's exactly what the Wildcats were set to prove this week. Head coach Gary Freeman and his team had been struggling lately with players shooting less than normal rounds. But, thanks to practice and determination, the team came around and played up to par. "We had to get back to business," stated Coach Freeman. "Guys just weren't playing like they and I know they can. So, we got to the course and practiced, and it all seemed to pay off this week with a good finish." Junior Troy Coker medaled for the first time at B-CU as he shot a first place best 141 for the two-day event. Coker shot scores of 71 and 70, respectively. He finished with a (-3) for the tournament. "Troy finally stepped up and played like we know he can," exclaimed Coach Freeman afterwards. "He had been having some confidence issues, I guess, but it all seemed to work out for him today and yesterday. He's ready to play now, I think." Teammates Dan Venema and Carl Corbin also posted top-10 performances. For Corbin, it was his fifth top-10 finish, while Venema collected his fourth of the 2006-07 campaign. Corbin, after being saddled with his worst performance of the year last weekend in Ft. Pierce, blasted away fro a 146 (78 / 68) for the tournament. His 68 on Wednesday was the lowest round posted in the entire tournament field. Flagler's Erik Downs scored a 69 on the first day of the event.
As Corbin tied for seventh place, Dan Venema's stroke kept the Wildcats red hot and in contention for the title. Venema shot a 145 to tie for fourth place overall. That included a low-round performance of 71 on Wednesday. Rounding out the top 10 players overall was Wildcats junior Juan Ronderos with a 147. Ronderos scored 72 and 75 for the event to earn him his third top-10 performance of the 2006-07 seasons, including the fall campaign. Greg Goad and Chris Dunn also competed for the Wildcats with scores of 159 and 160, respectively. Flagler College won the tournament with a score of 567 (-9) and finished as the only team to shoot under-par for the event. Gonzaga (589), Cleveland State (603) and Evansville (603) rounded out the top five teams. Also competing out of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference [MEAC] was Hampton University with a score of 679 (+103) to earn 10th place overall. The `Cats will hit the links again on Mar. 30 when they travel to Miami for a three-day tournament hosted by the University of Miami out of Coral Gables, Fla. The event will take place on Mar. 30-Apr. 1 at the Don Shula Golf Resort. For more information, please locate your internet browser to www.HurricaneSports.com. |
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