Crown College takes top spot in Day 1 of the 2015 UMAC Men's Golf Championship
UMAC Men's Golf Championship Website
UMAC Men's Golf Championship Day 1 Results
ALEXANDRIA, Minn. – Crown College finished out on top at the opening day of the 2015 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Men’s Golf Championship at the Alexandria Golf Club in Alexandria, Minnesota. The nine UMAC teams battled through the wind and cold weather conditions all working towards their chance at a conference championship.
The Storm finished with an impressive 18-stroke lead over second place Bethany Lutheran to end the day with a team score of 296. Thomas Messner led the way for Crown shooting an 18-hole score of 71 on the Par 72, 6,540-yard course, making him the top individual performer on the day. Four of the Crown golfers scored well under 80, putting the Storm men in a great position as they move into Day 2 of the Championship weekend.
Bethany Lutheran’s BJ Pennells finished the day with a score of 75 putting him in a three-way-tie for third in the Day 1 individual standings. Teammates Jordan Petzel and Andrew Aukes shot 18-hole scores of 77 and 80 respectively to help the Vikings finish the day in the second place spot.
The University of Northwestern and College of St. Scholastica both finished the first day of competition shooting team scores of 319 and in a tie for third place. Leading the way for the Eagles was Jeff Rynning with a score of 76, placing him in a tie for sixth place in individual standings. For the Saints both Marc Peterson and Kilen Eilefson scored under 80 shooting a 78 and 79.
The Martin Luther College Knights took the fifth place spot in the team standings on Day 1 with a score of 322. Josh Hanson who ended in a sixth place tie with Northwestern's Jeff Rynning, led the way for knights.
Not far behind the Knights in sixth and seventh place on the day were the University of Wisconsin-Superior and the University of Minnesota Morris with a 324 and 325 respectively.
Northland College finished eighth in the standings with a 344, with golfer Evan Lunda shooting a 75. North Central University landed the ninth spot shooting a team score of 345.
All nine teams will be back in action on Friday, with tee times scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. and weather forecast predicting a warmer temperatures for Day 2 of competition.
The winner of the 2015 UMAC Men’s Golf Championship will earn the league’s automatic bid to the 2016 NCAA Championship in Rochester, New York in May.