NORMAL, Ill. – The third and final round of the D.A. Weibring Intercollegiate Tournament concluded Monday with the Illinois State men's golf team taking first place with a team score of 862 (299-287-287), as freshman Trent Wallace sat at the top of the individual leaderboard, earning individual medalist honors in his first collegiate tournament.
In the final round, the Redbirds were led by Wallace (71-70-70), who finished in first on the individual leaderboard with a 211, firing two rounds under par. Junior Christian Crabill (73-73-73), sophomore Zach Burry (73-73-73), and senior Tyler Gentilella (71-71-77) each shot a 219 and tied for seventh place overall on the individual leaderboard. Sophomore Steven Mullins finished just behind his teammates with a 223 (78-74-71) after the third round of play, putting him in a tie for 17th place.
Head coach Ray Kralis is proud of the effort shown by his team throughout the tournament, highlighting the Redbirds ability to close out strong.
"Obviously a great start for the Redbirds collectively. I'm so proud of the way the guys played," Kralis said. "We had such a strong team performance in all three rounds. We won every round so we won the tournament in a pretty convincing fashion, and I thought what was really impressive was how the team responded Monday after we finished Sunday sitting in the lead. To go out and win round three and close says a lot about the guys and the potential of this group."
Competing as individuals, the Redbirds locked down the top-four spots, as freshman Michael Mounce fired a 223 (73-73-77), while freshman Branden Mounce carded a 229 (75-70-84). Junior Kyle Meihofer shot a 224 (78-75-71), while sophomore Jason Marrs finished just behind him with a 226 (76-76-74).
At the end of the tournament, Central Arkansas (286-282-281) finished in second place with a team score of 878, while Western Illinois (891), Missouri State (892) and Bradley (893), took third, fourth and fifth, respectively. Not only did Illinois State top the field of 18, but it also defeated seven Missouri Valley Conference rivals.
"For us, to get a win out of the gate like we did is pretty impressive," Kralis added. "It was a team effort across the board. The practices and the qualifying round leading up to this have required us to push each other. I like the direction this team is going. The beginning of the season is a great time to build up some momentum like we did, and I look forward to having a strong week preparing for Colorado State."
The first-place finish was the second-straight team title for Illinois State at the Weibring Intercollegiate after last year's tournament ended just before the third round due to poor playing conditions.
After a week break, the Redbirds head to Fort Collins, Colorado, for the Ram Masters Invitational, Sept. 21-22.
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