Kent State's Even Par Good For Eighth At Desert Intercollegiate
2/26/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Conners finishes runner up with a six-under 210 (67-75-68)
Team Results (.PDF)
Team & Player Results (.PDF)
Player Results (.PDF)
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — Led by a runner-up finish from sophomore Corey Conners (Listowel, Ontario) the No. 18/19 Kent State men's golf team began the spring portion of its schedule shooting an even par 864 for 54 holes to finish in eighth place at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate presented by Cleveland Golf this weekend.
Conners closed out the tournament with his second sub-70 round of the tournament posting a four-under 68 on Sunday. His effort earned him a career best runner-up finish and his second top five of the 2011-12 season. Conners' six-under, 210 (67-75-68) tied him with Joakim Mikkelsen of Baylor and Derek Ernst of UNLV. UNLV's Kevin Penner took individual medalist honors besting the threesome by a single stroke with a seven under 209 (67-69-73).
The competitive 24-team field was tight throughout the final round as only three shots separated fourth-eighth place. The Golden Flashes opened play with a six-under 282 on Saturday then followed with a four-over 292 in the second round and a 290 in the third.
"An even-par out of the gate in our first tournament since October is a nice start, but we made a few mistakes coming down the stretch which ended up costing us a few positions in the final standings," said Director of Golf/Head Coach Herb Page. "The good thing is they were all correctable mistakes and now we can head back home with a few more things to work on and correct before we head to Louisiana in a couple of weeks."
Led by three top five finishers, No. 12 UNLV won the event going away with an 844. Texas Tech was second with an 851 followed by No. 2 Auburn (855) and Saint Mary's (861). SMU and No. 13 Texas A&M tied for fifth with an 862.
Despite a non-counting final round 77, senior Mackenzie Hughes (Dundas, Ontario), was the second highest finisher on the team tying for 40th in the 120-man field. Hughes completed play with a three-over 219 (71-71-77). Sophomore Taylor Pendrith (Richmond Hill, Ontario) paced his 220 (70-80-70) with two rounds of 70 on the par 72 Classic Club golf course as he tied for 44th.
Junior Kevin Miller (Dover, Ohio) totaled a six-over 222 (74-72-76) while sophomore Kyle Kmiecik (Avon, Ohio) carded a 231 (81-74-76).
The Golden Flashes head to Louisiana for the Louisiana Classics at Oak Bourne Country Club March 5-6.
Follow the team on Twitter @KentStGolf.
Kent State R1-R2-R3 = Total
T 2 Corey Conners 67 75 68 210
T 40 Mackenzie Hughes 71 71 77 219
T 44 Taylor Pendrith 70 80 70 220
T 52 Kevin Miller 74 72 76 222
T 96 Kyle Kmiecik 81 74 76 231
