Men’s golf finishes 10th, women’s golf fades to last in tournaments

Oscar Rzodkiewicz, Assistant Sports Editor

Both the Eastern men’s and women’s golf teams got some run in separate tournaments this week, as the men finished 10th out of 13 teams while the women placed last.

On the men’s side, this year’s freshman spark plug Ben Lanman came out of the gates slowly at the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawk Classic, shooting a first-round 90 before dropping to 70 strokes in round two and a 79-stroke finish in the third round.

He finished in a tie for 59th overall.

The strongest play of the tournament for the Panthers came from sophomore Pierce Allord who recorded three sub-80-stroke rounds, including a second-round 73, en route to a tie for 32nd overall.

Allord beat his stroke average of 79.21 from last season in each of the three rounds.

Behind Allord, sophomore Nic Nguyen finished with a 230-stroke total across the three rounds, finishing tied for 37th overall.

The veteran senior Romeo Perez opened the tournament with a first-round 79 before dropping four strokes in round two and finishing with a 235-stroke finish.

Perez placed in a tie for 51st.

Freshman Preston Smith rounded out play for the Panthers as he posted a 236-stroke finish that slotted him tied for 54th overall.

The men’s team closes out fall play October 14th and 15th at the F&M Bank Austin Peay Intercollegiate at Greystone Golf Club.

For the women’s team, its fall season opener did not go as the Panthers might have hoped, finishing in last at the F&M Bank Austin Peay Intercollegiate by 66 strokes.

Eastern lost both Daphne Chang and Katlyn Hasprey, two of the top three lowest scorers from last season.

The other top-three golfer from last year, Monique Peterson, posted the best score for the Panthers with a team-low round of 80 in second 18 holes and a 246-stroke total.

Peterson finished last season with an 84.59 stroke average.

Senior Mckenzie O’Brien clocked in with a three-round total of 262 strokes, good for second on the team and 44th overall.

O’Brien averaged an even 89 strokes per round last season in 19 round appearances.

Sophomore Bailey Sharpmack and senior Sara Guetersloh finished in 45th and 46th with 262- and 263-stroke finishes, respectively.

Rounding out the Panthers, freshman Isabel Spanburg recorded a first-round 100 before chopping off seven strokes in round two and another two strokes for the final 18 holes.

She placed 48th overall.

The women’s team gets tournaments each of the next three weeks, starting with the Northern Kentucky Fall Classic at Lassing Pointe Golf Club October 7th and 8th.

Oscar Rzodkiewicz can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].