The Hillsdale College men's golf team took the course on Monday and Tuesday after a long winter layoff, competing for the first time this spring in the Findlay Spring Invitational at Boone's Trace Golf Club in Richmond, Kentucky.
Hillsdale played its first two rounds at even or under par to stay in contention for a top three finish, but was unable to hold it together for a strong finish in the final round, shooting six-over as a team for the final 18 holes to finish in seventh place with a score of 869. Just ten strokes separated third and seventh place in a tight battle near the top of the leaderboard.
The Chargers got a great round from sophomore
Jackson Piacsek, who shot a four-under 212, his best score as a collegiate golfer, to finish tied for eighth overall. The performance is Piacsek's first top 10 finish of the season and the third top 10 finish of his career at Hillsdale, and an encouraging start to the spring for an important golfer in the Chargers lineup. After starting with an even part 72 in the first round on Monday, Piacsek birdied five holes in round two to shoot a three-under 69, then held fast with a solid closing 71 in the final round on Tuesday to cement his spot in the top 10. Piacsek did especially well on Par 4s, shooting five-under for those holes in the tournament, tied for sixth best among all players. The sophomore also was consistent, with 38 pars, second-best among all players in the event, and just six bogeys, tied for sixth-best among all players as well.
Senior
Maxwell Burns was the next golfer on the leaderboard for Hillsdale, shooting a 74-71-76=221 to finish tied for 41st. Juniors
Oliver Marshall and
Robert Thompson each shot a 222 to finish tied for 47th as well, with Marshall carding rounds of 71 and 72 but let down by a round two score of 79, and Thompson shooting 71-76-75.
Freshman
John Cassiday rounded out the scoring golfers for Hillsdale, contributing a score of 71 in the second round for the Chargers, along with a pair of 77s to finish tied for 63rd. Another freshman,
Andrew Irvine, made his collegiate debut for Hillsdale playing as an individual, shooting 239 to tie for 102nd overall.
The Chargers will be back in action next week aiming for a better result at the Music City Invitational hosted by Trevecca Nazarene at the Hermitage Golf Club just outside of Nashville, Tennessee. With several teams coming up from the south, as well as regional foes Drury and Kentucky Wesleyan, it should be a solid field of competition for the Chargers as Hillsdale looks to build momentum towards the G-MAC Championships in mid-April.
