May 22, 2024
Cobras Move Up to 6th at National Championships
WINTER GARDEN, FL -- Coker fired an even-par round of 284 Wednesday in the second round of the NCAA DII Men's Golf National Championships to move up two spots to 6th place out of 20 teams.
The nationally 18th-ranked Cobras will tee off beginning at 12:16 p.m. Thursday in the third and final round of the stroke-play portion of the championship on the Crooked Cat course at Orange County National. The top eight teams will advance to Medal Match Play on Friday (quarterfinals in the morning and semifinals in the afternoon) and Saturday (National Championship match).
The Cobras rode a 2-under 69 from senior Caleb Tidd and a 1-under 70 from senior Aaron Teece to another solid round. Coker fired 1-under on Tuesday, so it stands 1-under through 36 holes. Senior Jonathan Hallinger added a 72, senior Killian Ryan carded 73 and junior Derek McGlaughlin shot 76.
"We had another slow start today, but our veteran team once stayed patient and played well (6-under) on the back nine to put up a good score," Coker head coach John Hackney said. "The starting holes are tough on this long (7,419 yards) track. We have played them 16-over par for all five guys in the first two rounds, so when we shore that up tomorrow, we should be in business. The first three-hole stretches on each nine have played the hardest overall for the entire field."
The Cobras were 7-under par on the par 5s Wednesday and 1-over on the par 3s.
No. 6 Oklahoma Christian has a commanding lead in the team race at 16-under par after shooting 9-under on Wednesday. No. 5 Colorado Christian and No. 7 West Florida are tied for second at 7-under; No. 15 Central Oklahoma is fourth at -5; and No. 23 West Texas A&M is fifth, just a shot ahead of the Cobras.
No. 24 Wingate is tied for 7th with No. 3 Grand Valley State at +1. The chase group just outside the top 8 includes No. 16 Henderson State and No. 33 Cal State Monterey Bay at +4 and No. 34 Ferris State and No. 1 North Georgia at +5.
"As usual, everyone will come out guns-a-blazin' tomorrow to try to get in that top 8," Hackney said. "Our guys are ready. We want to come out fast and put up a really low number tomorrow to gain a higher seed, and this talented group can certainly go deep."
Tidd had two birdies and an eagle in his round when he hit 10 fairways and 12 greens. Teece played the first two holes at 3-over, birdied 7 and 8, and doubled nine for a 3-over 38. He caught fire on the back nine, firing a 4-under 32 with birdies on Nos. 10, 12, 14 and 17. He hit 13 greens and needed only 28 putts.
Hallinger also had four birdies. He hit nine greens inside 15 feet, needed just 29 putts, and was 4-of-7 in up-and-downs. Ryan's iron play was solid as he hit 14 greens, but 33 putts kept him from going low. McGlaughlin hit 14 greens as well but had 36 putts. After losing a ball on the first hole and making a triple, he rattled off eight straight pars.
"These guys are just superb players and because they are so experienced, they are resilient, so they recover quickly from bad shots or holes. We just didn't make many mid-range putts today, but they'll go down tomorrow."
Hallinger is tied for 12th overall at 68-72--140. The Cobras' depth is evident when you see that Tidd is at 140, Ryan at 142, Teece at 146, and McGlaughlin at 148.
"We have a lot of weapons and we plan on coming out firing in the third round so we can get into the Medal Matchplay," Hackney said.