After opening its season with an eighth place finish in the Carpet Capital Collegiate, Kennesaw State scored back-to-back runner-up finishes in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Raleigh, N.C.
The Owls finished second behind Mississippi in an event hosted by Middle Tennessee, posting a 10-over 874 total, six shots behind the winning score, after a tournament best 4-under 284 in the final round.
Wyatt Larkin, a junior from Morganton, led the Owls, tying for fourth at even par 216, closing with a 69. Freshman Connor Coffee of Peachtree City shot a final round 70 and tied for ninth at 218, with senior Chris Guglielmo of Cumming contributing a team best 71 in the second round.
Dunwoody’s Marcus Byrd led host Middle Tennessee to a fourth place finish, placing third individually at 215.
Kennesaw also took second in a tournament hosted by North Carolina State, shooting 12-under 840 to finish three behind East Carolina. The Owls posted scores of 278-277-285.
Guglielmo was second individually at 5-under 208 highlighted by a second round 65, the low score of the day. Coffee shot 67 in the second round and tied for fifth at 211, with Pablo Rodriguez-Tabernero T10 at 212 after opening with a 66. Sophomore Jake Fendt of Cumming shot 68 in the first round and tied for 13th at 213.
Duluth’s Benjamin Shipp, a freshman at NC State, tied for fifth at 211 with a second round 67.
Competing against one of the strongest fields on the Fall schedule, Georgia placed third in the Nike Invitational at Colonial CC in Ft. Worth, Tex. The Bulldogs shot 851, including a 2-under 278 in the second round. Vanderbilt won at 839 with Florida second at 840.
Jaime Lopez-Rivarola was low for the Bulldogs, placing sixth at 1-under 209. Greyson Sigg, a senior from Augusta, tied for 12th at 71-69-72–212 along with Gainesville freshman Spencer Ralston, who was among the leaders after 36 holes with scores of 69-67.
The Bulldogs were also in the field of the tournament at Middle Tennessee and tied for fifth at 883, 15 shots behind Mississippi’s winning score. Ralston was low for Georgia, tying for seventh at 217, with Sigg tying for ninth at 218. Sophomore Tye Waller of Griffin tied for 13th at 220, with the Bulldogs’ lowest score in the tournament a 71. Georgia had to count a 76 in each of the three rounds.
After opening the Fall with a tie for fifth in the Carpet Capital, Georgia Tech took sixth in a tournament in Scottsdale, Az., shooting 8-under 844 to finish well behind LSU’s winning total. The Yellow Jackets were 12-under after 36 holes before closing with a 4-over 288.
Chris Petefish was low for the Jackets, tying for ninth at 207, with freshman Luke Schniederjans of Powder SpringsT13 at 208 with scores of 69-67-72. Schniederjans was tournament medalist in the Jackets’ opener at The Farm outside Dalton. Vince Whaley shot a final round 69 for Tech, with Columbus junior James Clark shooting 71-72 the first two days and Albany sophomore Tyler Joiner opening with scores of 72-70.
Georgia State hosted the tournament in Scottsdale and played well the first two days with scores of 285 and 284, but struggled in the final round and finished 12th in the 16-team field. Nathan Mallonee, a senior from Lexington, was low for the Panthers the first day with a 69. Nathan Williams, a sophomore from Gainesville, shot 71-71 the first two days, with sophomore Nick Budd of Woodstock matching Williams’ second round 71. Alexander Herrmann was low for State in the second round with a 69.
The Panthers opened their Fall schedule in September with a bang, setting a school record with an opening round of 18-under 270 at the famed Ocean Course on Kiawah Island. Budd and Herrmann both shot 66 and Mallonee added a 68 as part of State’s 270 total, but other than a 68 later that day by Herrmann, the Panthers fell back over the final 36 holes.
Georgia State led by nine shots after the opening round, but shot 289 that afternoon to lose the lead. The Panthers wound up seventh at 864, 14 shots behind the winning score, after a final round 305. Herrmann finished third at 209, with Budd 33rd at 218 and Mallonee 38th at 219.
Augusta tied for fifth at Kiawah Island at 863, opening with scores of 284-277. The Jaguars’ Jake Marriott earned medalist honors with scores of 66-68-73—207. Senior Emmanuel Kountakis of Augusta shot a 67 in the second round and tied for 11th at 214.
The Jaguars competed in the tournament in Scottsdale along with Georgia State and Georgia Tech and finished ninth at 859. Kountakis shot a second round 68 and was low for Augusta, tying for 18th at 211.
In the Wolfpack Intercollegiate hosted by NC State, Augusta was sixth at 863, highlighted by a 10-under 274, the low score of the second round. Kountakis shot 70-69 the first two rounds and wound up tied for 18th at 214.
Georgia Southern shot 3-under 281 in the second round of the tournament at NC State, but fell back the next day and finished T11 at 875. Steven Fisk, a sophomore from Stockbridge, opened with 68 and tied for 26th at 218. Freshman Brett Barron of Cumming had the low score of the tournament for the Eagles, a 67 in the second round.
The Eagles opened their Fall schedule at the Ocean Course on Kiawah Island, S.C., and placed fourth at 4-under 860, 10 shots behind the winning score. Archer Price was sixth at 211 to lead Georgia Southern, with Jake Story T11 at 214. Fisk shot a 68 in the second round, with freshman Alexander DeRosa of Atlanta making his college debut along with Barron and shooting a team best 69 in the opening round. Barron contributed a second round 72.
Georgia Southern was scheduled to play a tournament in Virginia hosted by Wake Forest, but the event was cancelled due to fog.
Mercer opened its Fall schedule in Myrtle Beach and shot 20-under 844 to finish fifth, 12 shots behind Jacksonville. Stanton Schorr, a sophomore from Columbus, tied for 10th for the Bears at 6-under 210, shooting a 66 in the first round and a 69 in the third round. Jerry Ren also tied for 10th with a 68 the second day. Hayes Rule, a sophomore from Eatonton, carded three straight scores of 71 and tied for 19th at 213. Justin Connelly, a senior from McDonough, closed with rounds of 69 and 71, and sophomore Brennan Bogdanovich of Cumming contributed an opening round 71.
The Bears led a tournament hosted by Eastern Kentucky after 18 holes at 1-uner 279 but fell back the next two rounds and placed 10th in the 18-team field at 864. Schorr and Connelly both tied for 25th at 214, with Schorr shooting 69 in the opening round and Connelly opening with back-to-back scores of 69.