Spartan Golfers Open Play in NJCAA Division III Tournament
The Spartan golf team opened play in the NJCAA Division III National Golf Tournament in Chautauqua, New York on Tuesday. This is a 4-round championship that concludes on Friday. This is the twelfth consecutive year the Spartans have qualified for the National Tournament, having finished in the top 5 as a team every year. It also marks the first time in 11 years that M State has had a women’s golfer qualify for nationals.
Freshman Ellia Soydara fired a first round 80 that puts her in a tie for third place individually. Soydara birdied the first hole of the championship, the first of her three birdies in the round. Trinity Ahing of Sandhills CC is the first round leader with a score of 74.
“Ellia played a very solid first round,” stated M State Head Coach Jason Retzlaff. “She birdied the first hole and was off to the races. I thought her ball striking was very good and she did a great job managing her game. It was a very nice start to her championship.”
Riley Stromlund tees off on the par 3 8th hole at Chautauqua GC on day one. (Photo taken by Jeff Haukos)
Ellia Soydara hitting her approach shot on the 9th hole in the first round. (Photo taken by Jennifer Soydara)
The Spartan Men shoot a first round team score of 330, putting them in 7th position. Leo Stepan led the Spartans with an 80, while Joel Quam and Mikey Vall shot rounds of 82. Riley Stromlund had an 86 and Braxton Kerstein came in with an 87.
“Our men struggled today after getting off to a slow start,” noted Retzlaff. “But, we hung in there and played some nice golf on the back nine. Hopefully that will give us some momentum to move up the standings in the coming days. A 72-hole championship is so unique and patience is key. The guys are excited to get out there and make some putts tomorrow.”
Sandhills CC (Pinehurst, NC) is the team leader with a team score of 292. The rest of the team scores were as follows:
2. Georgia Military College (Milledgeville, GA) 301, 3. Jamestown CC (Jamestown, NY) 318, 4. Butler County CC (Butler, PA) 321, 5. DuPage CC (Glen Ellyn, IL) 323, 6. Onondaga CC (Syracuse, NY) 327, 7. M State (Fergus Falls, MN) 330, 7. Nassau CC (Garden City, NY) 330, 9. RCSJ Gloucester (Sewell, NJ) 352, 10. Terra State CC (Fremont, OH) 355, 11. Holyoke CC (Holyoke, MA) 433
Complete results of the championship can be found here: https://jccjayhawks.com/events/njcaa-stats
