AKRON, Ohio — No. 14 Transylvania men's golf saved its best golf for the final round Tuesday, firing a 3-under-par 285 to surge into third place at the Blue Streak Invitational at historic Firestone Country Club.
The Pioneers completed the 54 holes event behind only John Carroll and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. Transylvania's closing 285 was powered by Andy Steed's 5-under 67 and Carter Denton's 2-under 70.
Firestone provided a fitting stage for the Pioneers' strong finish. The Akron landmark has hosted multiple PGA Tour events and other major professional championships.
STEED GOES LOW TO FINISH SIXTH
Steed (Wilmington, OH) put together one of the tournament's standout rounds Tuesday. After playing the opening nine in even-par 36, the sophomore caught fire on the back nine. He birdied Nos. 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18, playing the final nine in a bogey-free 5-under 31 to post a 67 and finish sixth individually at 3-over par.
DENTON DELIVERS ANOTHER TOP-10 PERFORMANCE
Denton (Frankfort, KY) also came through when Transylvania needed it, carding a 70 to finish ninth overall at 5-over par. After a 38 on the opening nine, Denton made his move coming home, birdieing Nos. 10, 14, 16 and 18 for a 4-under 32 on the back nine.
PIONEERS GET CONTRIBUTIONS THROUGHOUT THE LINEUP
Seth Hickerson contributed a final-round 73 (+1), while Hank Shick added a 75 (+3) to help the Pioneers post their best team round of the tournament.
Ty Ruttinger was consistent throughout the event, recording three consecutive rounds of 77 to finish at 15-over par. Will Carter showed significant improvement after an opening-round 86, bouncing back with rounds of 76 and 75. Carter improved by 11 strokes from his opening round to Tuesday's finale, and made an eagle on the par-5 18th in round two.
Bennett Lynd rounded out the Transylvania contingent with rounds of 83, 81 and 81.
COMPLETE TRANSYLVANIA PLAYER RESULTS
STRONG FINISH TO CLOSE OUT THE FALL SEASON
The finish was particularly significant given the strength of the field. In the latest Bushnell/Golfweek Division III Coaches' Poll released Sept. 25, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps was ranked No. 4, Aurora No. 9, Mary Hardin-Baylor No. 11, Transylvania No. 14 and John Carroll tied for No. 21. Gettysburg was receiving votes. The next Coaches poll will be release on October 16 and the national CLIPPD rankings will be release in October as well.
|
Finish
|
Team
|
GCAA Rank
|
To Par
|
|
1
|
John Carroll
|
#21
|
+17
|
|
2
|
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
|
#4
|
+20
|
|
3
|
Transylvania
|
#14
|
+26
|
|
4
|
Aurora
|
#9
|
+36
|
|
5
|
Gettysburg
|
RV
|
+48
|
|
6
|
Mary Hardin-Baylor
|
#11
|
+49
|
PIONEERS ANSWER WITH A CLOSING CHARGE
The Pioneers' final-round performance capped a fall schedule built around high-level competition. At Firestone, the response was clear: Transylvania finished its tournament with four strong counting scores, two top-10 individual finishes and a 285 that moved the team three spots up the final leaderboard.
