Feb. 28, 2006
NAPLES, Fla. -
Senior Kris Wildenradt fired a third-round three-under-par 69 and finished tied with teammate Matt Miller for 10th place as the Illinois State men's golf team finished in fourth-place at the 2nd annual Lexus Naples Intercollegiate hosted by PGA Tour professional Peter Jacobsen Tuesday at the Hammock Bay Golf and Country Club in Naples, Fla.
Wildenradt (70, 74, 69) and Miller (73, 66, 74) finished the tournament with a three-round total of three-under-par 213. The Redbirds maintained their position in fourth-place, shooting a three-round total of 870 (294, 284, 292). Head coach Ray Kralis felt positive about the Redbirds' overall play in the tournament
"I feel that we are pretty satisfied," said Kralis. "I was pleased with our performance. We had different guys step up in different times. Miller and Wildenradt both had great tournaments."
Senior Matt Maskel fired a third-round one-under-par 71 and finished tied for 35th with a three-round total of 225 (74, 80, 71). Senior Chris Eddy finished one shot back of Maskel, firing a three-round total of 226 (77, 71, 78) and tied for 37th. Freshman Ben Murphy rounded out the lineup for the `Birds, firing a three-round total of 232 (81, 73, 78) and tied for 50th.
No. 20 Baylor won the tournament, finishing four shots ahead of Florida State and five shots ahead of No. 19 Wake Forest after shooting a three-round team total of 19-under-par 845 (288, 278, 279). Baylor's Ryan Baca won medalist honors, two shots ahead of Wake Forest's Kyle Reifers after shooting a three-round total of 11-under-par 205 (68, 70, 67).
The `Birds were able to finish ahead of notable Midwestern schools Notre Dame (fifth-place), Wisconsin (seventh-place) and Ohio State (tenth-place). Kralis feels that the team's finish is a momentum builder heading into the rest of the spring schedule.
"Considering the field, a fourth-place finish is very respectable," said Kralis. "The three top teams played so well, with two of them being in the top 25 in the country. We still finished ahead of a lot of strong teams that are ahead of us in the rankings. It was a move in the right direction for us and we will take a lot of confidence from this tournament."
