Feb. 15, 2009
NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State men's golf team will head to San Antonio to compete in the 14th annual UTSA Oak Hills Invitational at the Oak Hills Country Club on Monday and Tuesday. The two-day, 54-hole event will feature 13 teams with 36 holes slated for Monday and 18 holes scheduled for Tuesday on the par-72 course.
Head coach Ray Kralis is eager to get the spring season underway.
"Our players enjoyed the break but are fired up to get back on the course," said Kralis. "We have a very competitive field this week, including last year's MVC champions, Wichita State. I know our players are excited at the opportunity to see where they stack up with last year's conference champs. As long as we worry about only the things we can control, I think we'll do fine."
The Redbird's lineup will feature Tommy Bliefnick, Jeff Kellen, Kyle Bragg, Joe Emerich and Ben Murphy.
The USTA Oak Hills Invitational field will consist of Air Force, Central Arkansas, DePaul, Louisiana-Monroe, McNeese State, Oklahoma, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas Tech, Texas State, UT-Arlington, University of Texas-San Antonio and MVC foe Wichita State.
Play will begin at 8 a.m. Monday with a shotgun start.
The Redbirds tallied top-10 finishes in all five events during the fall season, including four top-five's, two of which were second-place finishes. Illinois State remains undefeated against Missouri Valley Conference foes in 2008-09 with a 10-0-1 record.
