MADISON, Wis. – With all five golfers shooting under par, the Illinois State Redbirds tied a single-round school record and set a new tournament single-round and 36-hole record, carding a second round 273 (-15) to push the team to a two-round score of 559 (-17), and four strokes ahead of the field at the 2021 Badger Invitational.
"I couldn't be happier for Andrew (O'Brien) and Joe (Hodgson), as the seniors of the group, to have them go out and bring it when we needed it," said Illinois State head coach Ray Kralis. "Parker (Wisdom) is playing great, Felix (van Dijk) came back strong, and Valentin (Peugnet) has given us some good rounds. This team is fun to coach and they can play. I'm excited to go with this group. Their belief and confidence is strong, especially on a course like this – this is a great golf course. I love seeing what we are capable of. At the same time, we need to go out and take care of business tomorrow."
Illinois State stands ahead of the remaining 14 schools in the field, including Sam Houston State, who last season was ranked inside of the GolfStat Top-20. Sam Houston State trails the 'Birds by four strokes with a two-round total of 563 (the fourth-lowest 36-hole score in tournament history). Host Wisconsin (571), Cincinnati (574), Iowa State (575), Northern Illinois (576), Eastern Michigan (583), South Dakota State (585), High Point (589), Abilene Christian (589), Toledo (592), Augusta (594), Coastal Carolina (596), and Xavier (611) round out the 14 schools in the deep field.
The Redbirds – winners of this event during the 2018 season – will look to defend their lead heading into the third and final round on Tuesday morning, starting with a 9:50 a.m. tee time for van Dijk.
O'Brien stands in sole possession of first place, as he finished with a six-under-par 66 for the second round, tied for the ninth-lowest round in tournament history and his lowest round of his Redbird career. He joins former teammate David Perkins in the Badger Invite Top-10 record books, as the former Redbird's score of 65 from the 2018 season is tied for the second-lowest score in tournament history. Hodgson finished just behind O'Brien for the round with a five-under 67, as he and Wisdom's tournament total of 140 are tied for fourth in the field. van Dijk finished with a two-under 70, putting him in a tie for 45th over the two rounds, while Peugnet shot a -1 for the day, as all five Redbird golfers finished under par in the round.
The Redbirds started strong on the day, as the team had eight birdies of the 10 recorded scores on the first two holes of the round, including the 555-yard par-five second hole where all five golfers carded a birdie.
O'Brien, who a day earlier finished one shot under par with 17 pars and a birdie, opened his day with a par, birdie, and bogey, and was even par through the first four holes. The Redbird senior caught fire from there and carded a birdie on five of his next seven holes – including three straight under-par holes on the ninth, 10th, and 11th holes. He closed strong over the final seven holes with six pars and a birdie to perch himself atop the leaderboard with 18 holes to play in the tournament.
Hodgson had a stellar start with birdies on his first two holes, and he carried that momentum with him through the remainder of the round. He added a birdie on the par-five, 623-yard sixth hole, before tallying his sole bogey of the round on the par-four seventh hole. Back-to-back pars sent him into the turn at two strokes under par. Over his back nine he added three more birdies, on the 11th, 14th, and 17th holes, closing the day with a career-low 67.
Wisdom finished with his second consecutive round of 70 in the tournament, and he opened his round with back-to-back birdies on the first and second holes. A single bogey on the par-three eighth hole was the only blemish over the remainder of the front nine, as he added six pars during that stretch to make the turn at one stroke under par. Heading into the back nine, he had three birdies in his first four holes, before closing his day with four pars and a bogey over his final five holes to end his day at two strokes under par.
After a rough opening round, van Dijk rebounded spectacularly with a round that opened with back-to-back birdies. A pair of bogeys – on the fifth and eighth holes – were the only interruptions to a stretch that included four pars and pushed his score to even par through eight holes. He birdied the ninth hole heading into the turn, and after three consecutive pars he birdies back-to-back holes on the 13th and 14th holes. Three pars and a bogey down the stretch cemented his two-under round for the Redbirds.
In a steady second round, Valentin Peugnet recorded 15 pars over the 18 holes, as he carded a birdie on the par-five second hole and the par-five 16th hole, with the lone blemish coming via a bogey on the 12th hole.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
