Kent State University
MAC Championship
Flashes in the lead after day 1 of MAC Men's Golf Championship
5/2/2014 7:19:00 PM | Men's Golf
CARMEL, Ind. – A birdie run through the middle 18 holes on day one of the Mid-American Conference Men's Golf Tournament vaulted Kent State into first place at the halfway point of its chase for a sixth consecutive league crown.
The Golden Flashes shot rounds of 286 and 284 on Friday at Prairie View Golf Club for a 6-under-par total that put them five shots ahead of second-place Akron.
A birdie-birdie finish to the day helped Kent State senior and 2012 MAC medalist Corey Conners (72-67–139) into a share of the individual lead with Akron's Charlie Bull at 5-under par. The individual leaderboard also features defending champion Taylor Pendrith of Kent State lurking just two shots back and in third place at 3-under par following rounds of 71 and 70.
"What a great second round for Corey Conners, with those two birdies at the end and a bunch of great shots, including a 15-footer for eagle at the par-5 third hole," said Kent State head coach Herb Page. "And it was pretty much the same day most of the way for Taylor Pendrith, who had it to 5-under and then uncharacteristically let it slip away a little bit at the end."
Despite putting themselves in position to add to their record 21 conference championships and also become the first team to win six outright MAC titles, the Flashes couldn't help but leave the 7,073-yard, par-72 course in suburban Indianapolis wondering about what might have been.
After recovering from a slow start with a barrage of birdies during the back nine of round one and the front nine of round two, the Flashes found themselves at 12-under par and ahead of Akron by 11 shots. But instead of adding to that lead, Kent State fell back to the field with a stretch that included nine bogeys and two double bogeys over the day's final five holes.
"These things are hard to win," said Page. "The good news is we had a Jekyll-and-Hyde day out there, and still we have a five-shot lead. Our guys know how poorly they started out and how poorly the finished. We could have had a double-digit lead, but we gave it away with too many big numbers and too many three-putts.
It's hard to get too negative because those middle nines were pretty fabulous. As a coach, a day like this gets very exciting, and then it also gets very frustrating. We have guys on this team who know how to win, though, and they just have to come back out here on Saturday and Sunday and stay away from those big numbers. We haven't played our best golf yet. Not even close."
Kent State's senior trio of Conners, Pendrith and Kyle Kmiecik have never lost at the MAC Championships. Kmiecik joined his classmates on the top 10 of the individual leaderboard in a tie for eighth place after posting even par with rounds of 71 and 73.
Playing in their first MAC Championship, freshman Josh Whalen (72-74–146) and Sebastian Bendsen (76-74–150) finished day one in 16th and 25th place, respectively.
Kent State will play in threesomes with Akron and Toledo in round three beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday. The final group is scheduled to tee off at 10:10 a.m.
Friday's first round was played under gloomy skies with gusting winds and temperatures that reached just 52 degrees. The forecast is brighter for the final two rounds with sunny skies and highs in the 70's predicted for Saturday and Sunday.
| Position | Teams | Scoring | Rounds | Total Score | |||||
| to par | thru | today | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 1 | Kent State | -6 | F | -4 | 286 | 284 | - | - | 570 |
| 2 | Akron | -1 | F | +3 | 284 | 291 | - | - | 575 |
| 3 | Toledo | +3 | F | -2 | 293 | 286 | - | - | 579 |
| 4 | Eastern Michigan | +8 | F | +12 | 284 | 300 | - | - | 584 |
| 5 | Ball State | +14 | F | +10 | 292 | 298 | - | - | 590 |
| 6 | BGSU | +15 | F | +7 | 296 | 295 | - | - | 591 |
| 7 | Miami | +22 | F | +8 | 302 | 296 | - | - | 598 |
| 8 | Ohio | +27 | F | +11 | 304 | 299 | - | - | 603 |
| 9 | Northern Illinois | +33 | F | +13 | 308 | 301 | - | - | 609 |
| Position/Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Corey Conners | 72 E | 67 -5 | -- | -- | 139 -5 |
| 3 Taylor Pendrith | 71 -1 | 70 -2 | -- | -- | 141 -3 |
| 8 Kyle Kmiecik | 71 -1 | 73 +1 | -- | -- | 144 E |
| 16 Josh Whalen | 72 E | 74 +2 | -- | -- | 146 +2 |
| 25 Sebastian Bendsen | 76 +4 | 74 +2 | -- | -- | 150 +6 |
| Team Total | 286 -2 | 284 -4 | 0 E | 0 E | 570 -6 |
| Team Position | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 |
