Category | Sports

Owls on the road

Published on October 21, 2008 by The Sentinel

Golf, Tennis, and Cross Country

GOLF
Owls hit the Bricks in Macon
    The Brickyard Collegiate Championship was proven difficult to swallow for the men’s golf team as they finished 15th in the two-day event in Macon, Ga. on Sun., Oct. 12 and Mon., Oct. 13.

    Senior Michael Tulacz led the team as he finished in a tie for 14th on the first day by firing a one-under par 69 after the first 36 holes of play at the 7,104-yard, par-70 Brickyard at Riverside Golf Club.

    “Today was a big opportunity for us to climb the leader board,” said KSU Head Coach Blake Smart. “Unfortunately, we really finished poorly and gave up a lot of shots to the field.”

    The second day of the championship was not much better for the Owls as star-studded Tulacz slipped to 36th place and his teammates finished with a 54-hole total of 905.

    “We will come up with something to get ourselves squared away,” said Smart.

    The Owls will return to action Oct. 24-26 for the Columbia University Invitational in Atlantic City, N.J.

TENNIS
Rough ending in regionals
    The men’s tennis team traveled to Lexington, Ky. for the ITA Men’s Southeast Regional, which was held from Thurs., Oct. 16 through Sun., Oct. 19 at the UK Boone Tennis Center and the Lexington Tennis Club.

    Freshman duo Simon Janik and Michael Langel competed, but lost to the University of Miami’s doubles team 8-2 on the first day of the regional.

    “Simon and Michael played well but lost focus a couple of times on game points, which ended up hurting us,” said Head Coach Padgett.

    The Owls weekend came to an early end after they lost three matches in the single matches in the single elimination round of play on Sat., Oct. 18. Janik, Langel and freshman teammate Lawrence Washington lost to their opponents in two sets.

    “Tonight was a difficult night for us and it showed that we absolutely need to get into the gym and get stronger physically,” said Padgett. “I am disappointed in the lack of mental toughness that we showed at times during this tournament.”

    The ITA Men’s Southeast Regional concluded the Owls fall season. Their spring season will begin on Feb. 6 in Clinton, S.C. as they will play against the Presbyterian Blue Hose.

CROSS COUNTRY
Two top five finishes in Tennessee
    Senior Scott Burley led the men’s cross country team to a fifth place finish after he placed fifth himself in the 5k race with a time of 15:19 at the Front Runner Invitational in Chattanooga, Tenn. on Sat., Oct. 18.

    “The entire team finished today’s race with lower times than the last time we were here, which is a good indicator of how much we have improved,” said Burley.

    The women’s cross country team also had a top five performance as sophomore Mackenzie Howe led the team to second place. Howe and junior teammate Soibhan Wolcott finished in the two mile race’s top ten with times of 11:11 and 11:43.

    “I think a lot of our girls are really getting into the best shape they have been this season, so if we continue on that path through the next couple of weeks, we should be able to upset some people at conference,” said assistant coach Jason Waters.

    The Owls next event will be on Nov. 1 in Macon, Ga.