Stephen F. Austin
Jim Rivers Intercollegiate
SFA Places Second at Jim Rivers Intercollegiate
10/21/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
RUSTON, La. - Stephen F. Austin shot its third-straight sub-par round en route to a runner-up showing at the Jim West Intercollegiate. The Lumberjacks finished the 54-hole tournament with an 11-under 853, the fourth-lowest team score in program history, as all five SFA golfers finished among the top-20 in the individual standings.
SFA's 853 was one for the record books as only three other 54-hole tournaments were lower than the Lumberjacks' performance in Ruston. It was 15 shots back of the program record of 838, set in 1972 at the East Texas State Invitational, three shots back of the 850 posted at the Bearkat Classic in 2008 and two shots behind the 851 shot at the SFA Piney Woods Invitational in 1969.
After posting an 8-under 568 through the opening two rounds, SFA continued its impressive play with a 3-under 285 in round three, giving the Lumberjacks three-straight sub-par rounds. The Lumberjacks finished 13 shots back of North Texas for the team title as the Mean Green shot a blistering 24-under 840 for the event.
Three Lumberjacks finished in the top-10 among the individual standings, led by sophomore Baxter Ward tying for third with a 9-under 207 thanks to his final round 3-under 69. It was the lowest 54-hole score of Ward’s career, and is tied for the third-lowest 54-hole individual score, surpassing the 214 he shot at the Moe O’Brien Intercollegiate in February, as his third-place showing is the best performance of his Lumberjack career.
Junior Luke Sheehan shot a 1-over 73, giving him a 2-under 214 for the event and sitting all alone in ninth-place. It marks the fifth top-10 finish of Sheehan’s career as he tied his personal-best with the 214, matching his performance at the 2013 Harold Funston Invitational.
Senior Blake Pugh also shot a 1-over 73 over the final 18 holes, tying for 10th overall with a 1-under 215. For Pugh, it is the eighth top-10 showing of his SFA career as he eclipsed the 100-round plateau, seeing action in 102 rounds as a Lumberjack.
Senior Bradley Phelps placed 19th for SFA, shooting an even-par 72 over the final 18 holes and giving him a 4-over 220 for the tournament. Phelps recorded his first top-20 finish of the season and the sixth of his SFA career.
Junior Nathan Weant posted a 1-under 71 over the final round, finishing tied for 20th overall and giving him the first top-20 showing as a Lumberjack. Weant posted a 5-over 221, shooting a 1-under 143 over the final 36 holes of the tournament.
Three golfers also competed as individuals, led by Cory Brown’s 7-over 223 (73-76-74), tying for 31st. Freshman Tony Underwood tied for 40th overall with an 11-over 227 (77-76-74) with freshman Wade Davis shooting an even-par 72 over the final round to finish with a 23-over 239 (83-84-72).
The Lumberjacks finished four strokes ahead of host Louisiana Tech (7-under 857) and 11 shots better than fourth-place Central Arkansas (Even-par 864), making SFA the highest finishing Southland Conference school. Southern Miss (8-over 872) rounded out the top-five as North Texas’ Juan Munoz and Louisiana Tech’s Victor Lange shared the individual title with a 13-under 203.
SFA will have little time to dwell on the success of the past two days as the Lumberjacks will be back in action next week, competing in its third tournament in as many weeks. SFA closes out the fall portion of its schedule with a trip to Vero Beach, Fla., competing in the Quail Valley Intercollegiate Oct. 27-28.
2014 Jim Rivers Intercollegiate Final Results
| Place | Golfer | Score |
| T-3rd | Baxter Ward | 68-70-69=207 (-9) |
| 9th | Luke Sheehan | 70-71-73=214 (-2) |
| T-10th | Blake Pugh | 70-72-73=215 (-1) |
| 19th | Bradley Phelps | 75-73-72=220 (+4) |
| T-20th | Nathan Weant | 78-72-71=221 (+5) |
| T-31st | Cory Brown | 73-76-74=223 (+7) |
| T-40th | Tony Underwood | 77-76-74=227 (+11) |
| T-56th | Wade Davis | 83-84-72=239 (+23) |
| 2nd | Stephen F. Austin | 283-285-285=853 (-11) |
Players in italics competed as individuals
-SFA-
