The Hillsdale College men's golf team entered the final round of this week's Ralph Hargett Memorial in eighth place, but climbed three spots on the final day with an impressive closing push to take fifth overall in the 18-team invite, one stroke behind fourth-place Belmont Abbey.
The Chargers' final round of 297 wasn't Hillsdale's best score of the event, but on a less-than-ideal weather day when teams all around Hillsdale were running into trouble, the Chargers' ability to hold things together and crank out consistent rounds helped Hillsdale beat three teams ahead of them in the national rankings, including 28th-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne by one stroke.
Hillsdale's three freshmen led the way for the Chargers with solid rounds. Oliver Marshall tied for 11th, just one stroke off a top 10 finish, with a steady 71-72-74-217 to finish one-over-par for the event. Marshall was among the event's best on Par 4s, shooting even-par on those holes, and finished with 12 birdies across three rounds, tied for the sixth-best of any player in the event.
Close behind him was teammate Ryan O'Rourke, who bounced back from an opening round 75 to close with back-to-back even-par rounds of 72 to finish tied for 17th at 219. O'Rourke's one-under front nine in the final round with back-to-back birdies on No. 12 and 13 helped the Chargers ease past Lenoir-Rhyne and into fifth place in a tight team race.
Robert Thompson also played consistent golf for the Chargers to finish tied for 33rd with a 74-76-75=225, while junior Will Verduzco carded a 75-78-76=229, salvaging a rough front nine in the first round with a two-under back nine to provide an important fourth score for the Chargers.
Sophomore Max Burns tied for 69th as well with a 80-76-76=234, improving in his final two rounds.
The result is an important one to build confidence for the Chargers, who were on the outside looking in following the first Midwest Regional Rankings of the season last Friday. This result should move them up in the next rankings ahead of a critical two week stretch that includes major regional showdowns at the Findlay Spring Invite in Kentucky next Monday and Tuesday, and at the Ken Partridge Invitational hosted by the University of Indianapolis the following weekend. Both events, along with the G-MAC Championships on April 22 through 24, will have a significant impact on the regional rankings and should go a long way in determining the makeup of the NCAA DII Midwest/Central Super Regional in May.
Photo by Emma Purdy