Sandburg Men’s Golf Finishes With a Flourish in Highland 36

  Aaron Frey
  Monday, August 28, 2017 10:15 AM
  Athletics

Freeport, IL

A strong second round helped the Carl Sandburg College men’s golf team to a fifth-place finish in the season-opening Highland 36 on Friday at Park Hills.

After shooting 331 on the opening 18 holes, the Chargers closed with a 313, the second-best total of any team in the second round. Sandburg’s 36-hole score of 644 was five shots behind fourth-place Black Hawk Black. Black Hawk Gold won the tournament with a 611, and its 311 in the second round was the only team score better than the Chargers’.

Sophomores Ryan Hansen (Neponset, Ill./Kewanee) and Anthony Neve (Macomb, Ill./Macomb) each shot 159 to lead Sandburg’s team scoring. Hansen’s second-round 76 was the best of any Charger on the day, and Neve’s 79 in the first round paced Sandburg early on.

Brayden Reece (Monmouth, Ill./Monmouth-Roseville) shot 163 (86-77) in his first collegiate tournament. Freshman Bryce Grafton (Orion, Ill./Orion) shot 85 and 80 to have both of his scores count for Sandburg, and sophomore Nate Bizarri (Monmouth, Ill./Monmouth-Roseville) shot 84 in each round.

Sandburg’s lowest total for the tournament came from Brady Grafton (Orion, Ill./Orion), who competed as an individual and shot 78 in each round. Other individuals for the Chargers were sophomore Michael Curry (Petersburg, Ill./PORTA) with a 179 (95-84) and freshman Andrew Welgat (Kewanee, Ill./Kewanee) with a 187 (93-94).

Sandburg will host the Charger Classic at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at Lake Bracken before taking part in the Fyre Lake Preview at 1:30 p.m. Friday at Fyre Lake Resort in Sherrard.