MADISON, Wis. – The Illinois State Redbirds dominated a field that consisted of five teams that advanced to the NCAA Regionals last season, and two to the NCAA Championships, leading wire-to-wire and finishing with a nine-under 855 to claim the 2018 Badger Invitational Title.
The Redbirds' three-round score of 855 is the 10th-best in tournament history, and was four strokes better than 2018 NCAA Championships qualifier Kansas, and eight strokes ahead of Iowa State – who also competed in the 2018 NCAA Championships. Nevada tied with Iowa State with an 863. Marquette took fifth with an 867 as Illinois State also finished ahead of Notre Dame, Rutgers, and host Wisconsin in the 12-team field.
"I am beyond proud of this group," said head coach Ray Kralis. "They handled themselves so well from start to finish. Leading wire-to-wire isn't as easy as it sounds, especially in a field like this. The team never backed down, which speaks volumes about these men."
Each of the five golfers for ISU finished inside of the top-30 overall, led by David Perkins, whose three-round total of 208 (-8) saw him finish in a tie for third, which is also the ninth-best single-tournament total in Badger Invitational history.
Perkins continued his strong second round which tied him for the collegiate course record, shooting a 69 (-3) on the day. He started strong, and was two-under at the turn with two birdies and seven pars, as he opened his back nine with two more birdies against six pars. His lone above-par number came on the final hole of the tournament, as he snapped a 37-hole bogey-less stretch for the junior.
Senior Trent Wallace was at or under par for the entire day, and his 71 gave him a three-day total of 213, which tied for seventh overall in the tournament. He started strong, and birdied the second hole of the day to drop to -1 overall. After five consecutive pars, he closed the front nine with a bogey and a birdie to make the turn at a stroke under par. He kicked off the back nine with a par, birdie, and bogey to remain at one stroke under par. He topped off his round with six consecutive pars, to end with a 71 on the day.
First-round leader Andrew O'Brien shot an even-par 72 to close the three-rounds with a 216, tied for 11th in the tournament. Like Wallace, O'Brien was never above par on the day, as he birdied the second and ninth holes of the day to take a two-under score into the turn. A double-bogey on the 11th hole was the only minor blip on an otherwise strong day, as the sophomore closed the day with seven consecutive pars.
Senior David Rauer, last season's Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year, had four birdies on the round, and against his three bogeys, he finished the day with a one-under 71, which took his three-round total to a 219 (+3) which is tied for 20th overall among the 77 competitors.
Closing out the five Redbirds in the tournament was junior Joel Durnford whose final round total of 73 put his three-round total to a 222 (+6), which tied for 29th overall.
Illinois State makes a quick turnaround and will travel to Fort Collins, Colorado, to compete at the Ram Masters Invitational, hosted by Colorado State University.
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