Wildcats Finish Strong to Move Up the Board to Ninth at the Nestle Purina Classic
Oct 08, 2002 | Men's Golf
Oct. 8, 2002
ST. CHARLES - With no where to go but up, the Kansas State men's golf team kept its poise Tuesday to move up the leaderboard and place ninth at the Nestle Purina Classic. The Wildcats tied their best score of the season with a 285 in the final round to finish with a tournament total of 872 on the par-71, 7,047-yard Missouri Bluffs Golf Course.
Junior Aaron Watkins kept his streak of top-20 finishes going, firing a 67 during the final round to tie for 12th at 210 (72-71-67). Watkins' 210 total ties his own school three-round record set at last year's Baylor Intercollegiate.
Junior A.J. Elgert had a strong final round for the Wildcats as well, shooting a 69 to finish tied for 32nd with a total of 218 to tie for 32nd. Junior Greg Douglas tied for 46th at 224, freshman Josh Persons tied for 59th at 226, and sophomore Matt Van Cleave placed 63rd with a 226. Junior Tim Moody, playing as an individual, posted a 232 to finish 68th.
"It was kind of a track meet out there," head coach Tim Norris said. "With all the low scores, we just had trouble keeeping up after the first round."
Illinois took home the team title with a sizzling 16-under-par 836. Host team Missouri finished three strokes behind the Illini in second at 839, posting the low team round of the tournament at 269 in today's final round. Iowa State's Drew Dalziel claimed medalist honors with an 8-under-par 205.
The Wildcats return home to Colbert Hills to host a 36-hole dual match with Oklahoma on October 17th. For complete results of the Nestle Purina Classic, please visit Missouri's website at www.mutigers.com.
Team Scores: 1. Illinois 836. 2. Missouri 839. 3. Iowa State 853. T4. West Florida 855. T4. Baylor 855. 6. Kansas 858. 7. Tulsa 861. 8. Texas Tech 869. 9. Kansas State 872. 10. Arkansas State 873. 11. Charlotte 877. 12. Rice 884. 13. Louisiana-Lafayette 895. 14. Mississippi St. 898.
Top Individuals: 1. Drew Dalziel, Iowa State, 205. T2. James Lepp, Illinois, 207. T2. Chris Marshall, Kansas, 207. T2. Michael Radek, Missouri, 207. T2. Patrick Nagle 207.
Wildcat Individuals: T12. Aaron Watkins 210. T32. A.J. Elgert 218. T46. Greg Douglas 224. T59. Josh Persons 226. 63. Matt Van Cleave 228. 68. Tim Moody 232.
