Oct. 31, 2006
PEORIA, Ill. -
The Illinois State men's golf team finished at the top of the final team standings, clinching its first title of the 2006-2007 season at the Bradley Fall Classic, Tuesday in Peoria, Ill. The Redbirds finished the 36-hole tournament with a team total of 605, defeating second-place Bradley by 10 strokes.
Competing at the WeaverRidge Golf Club, the Redbirds battled at not only one of "America's 100 Greatest Public Courses" as ranked by Golf Digest, but had to fight temperatures that dropped into the low 30s. While head coach Ray Kralis credited the combination of both the golf course and the weather for the higher scores in the final-round, he was glad that the team was able to hang on to capture the team title.
"It was a little bit tougher today," said Kralis. "The weather played a little bit of a role. We got ourselves in a hole early, but we hung in there and we got a key round from Joe Emerich. There wasn't a whole lot of scores in the 70s, and Emerich's 72 was our only one and it was a significant one. While yesterday may have been prettier than today, we got the job done with different people stepping up into different roles and sharing responsibilities."
Sophomore Joe Emerich fired a final round score of even-par 72, finishing in third place with a total of 146 (74, 72) and establishing a new career-high finish. Freshman Drew Miller finished with a total of 153 (73, 80) and tied for sixth, which was also his personal-best finish. Senior Matt Miller (71, 84) and teammate Tommy Bliefnick (73, 82) tied for ninth place with a total of 155. Rounding out the lineup, sophomore Ben Murphy finished tied for 15th with a total of 160 (80, 80).
Sophomore Matt Ryba and senior Ryan Brown also competed at the classic as individual entries. Ryba finished tied for 12th with a two-round total of 158 (78, 80), while Brown (22nd) finished with a total of 163 (78, 85).
Bradley, the tournament's host, finished in second behind the Redbirds with a team total of 615. Creighton finished with a total of 620 and in third. Wisconsin-Green Bay (624) finished in fourth place, while Chicago State (646) finished in fifth. Creighton's John Sutko took home medalist honors, defeating Bradley's Scott Phegley in a playoff. Sutko (72, 73) and Phegley (75, 70) finished with a total of 145.
"Reflecting on the fall, we can take a lot from this tournament," said Kralis. "It's a nice note to finish off the fall season. It's not only a win, but a win against a Central Illinois rival in Bradley. With a lot of golf fans in the Central Illinois area, it was something that we wanted to get done. I'm proud of the guys for finishing the battle in tough conditions and I look back with a lot of positives when thinking about the fall and I feel that we can take it into the spring season."
