DULUTH, Ga. – Led by three rounds of 70, the Georgia State men’s golf team shot a final round 6-under 282 to finish in third place at the eighth annual Autotrader Collegiate Classic at Berkeley Hills Country Club on Tuesday.
The Panthers finished a fall-season best 16-under par to also earn their best finish of the first half of the year.
Senior Severin Soller, who was competing as an individual for the Panthers finished tied for fourth at 9-under par following a final round 69.
Senior James Kyles and freshman David Li led those among the starting five as each tied for 14th at 6-under par. The duo each shot rounds of 2-under par 70 in the final round leading a charge on the back nine for the Panthers.
Georgia State got off to a bit of a rough start Tuesday morning, falling to as low as eighth place and standing at 6-over par for the day. However, the Panthers made 18 birdies over the final nine holes to rebound and climb back to third-place.
“I’m really proud of the way our guys finished the final tournament of the fall season,” head coach Chad Wilson said. “Overall we had a rocky fall and could easily have thrown in the towel after our opening nine holes today. However, they never quit grinding and now we have some really good momentum heading into the spring season as we look to win another conference championship.”
Defending champion Georgia Southern won its third Autotrader Collegiate Classic finishing at 35-under par for a one-stroke win over UNC Greensboro as the Spartans finished at 34-under par. Georgia State finished in third while Samford came in fourth place at 14-under par. James Madison rounded out the top five finishing at 12-under par.
Defending individual champion Steven Fisk shot a final round 69 to finish at 17-under par and claim his second-straight Autotrader Collegiate Classic. UNC Greensboro teammates Jonathan Brightwell and Bryce Hendrix tied for second place at 12-under par. Soller, along with Samford’s Alec Stopperich and Georgia Southern’s Wilson Andress tied for fourth place at 9-under par.
Junior Josh Edgar shot a final round 72 to finish in a tie for 19th at 3-under par, while fellow junior Egill Gunnarsson shot a 2-under 70 to finish at 3-over par and tied for 40th. Freshman Frederick Hedmark rounded out the line-up with a 1-over 73 to tie for 33rd at 2-over par.
Four other Panthers competed as individuals this week. Sophomore Connor McKinnon finished at 2-over par and tied for 33rd following a final round 76. Senior Nick Budd and sophomore Owen Sertl tied for 51st at 5-over par. Budd shot a 73 on Tuesday while Sertl finished with a 76. Senior Nathan Williams rounded out the group with a 73 in the final round to finish tied for 64th at 10-over par.
Georgia State will return to the course in the spring beginning with the Tiger Invitational hosted by Auburn at Grand National Golf Club Feb. 24-26.