Piedmont’s Austin Coleman (left) trimmed six strokes from his day one score to shoot a 74 in round two of the Royal Lakes Fall Invitational hosted by Oglethorpe, but it wasn’t enough to help PC climb in the standings as five other Lions finished behind him on the leaderboard.
Flowery Branch, GA – The Piedmont College men’s golf team finished up their third tournament of the fall Oct. 7 placing 13th overall in the Royal Lakes Fall Invitational. The team was able to knock off ten strokes collectively as a team led by Joseph Morris and Austin Coleman who both knocked off six strokes from their first days finish.
The pair featured two more Lions that were able to finish the second day under the field average of 77. Joining the duo were freshmen Sam Hill and Douglas Burke.
Oglethorpe University was able to come from behind and win their home event as the team scored 2 under par on the second day with a 286 (578 overall). Tying the outstanding second day scoring was Southwestern University (579 overall) who finished just one stroke behind Oglethorpe in second place.
The first day of competition would settle the final rankings as Oglethorpe’s 292 bested Southwestern’s 293. The team average for the tournament dropped roughly 3 strokes, with both of these teams shooting under par as a complete team.
The Lions were unable to catch up to the five other USA South member institutions that finished ahead of them on both days. LaGrange College finished 7 strokes behind Oglethorpe as they finished tied for 3rd with Centre College who led the field after the first day.
Ferrum College (604) wrapped up the tournament finishing in 8th along with Greensboro College (606) finishing tied for 9th, Huntingdon College (610) in 11th, and Maryville College (615) finishing in 12th just ahead of the Lions. NC Wesleyan (626) finished just behind the Lions in 14th, with Emory University (637) finishing in 15th.
Coleman shot a team low 74 on the second day along with Hill who had the best finish for the Lions ending up in 25th. Morris’ 3-over 75 brought him into a tie for 58th. Jake Forbes finished in a tie for 65 with a 79 in round one and two. Freshmen Davis Cook (T-73) followed in Forbes’ footsteps with the even scoring with an 80 on both days of the tournament. Douglas Burke (T-82) knocked off a team-high 9 strokes with a 77 on day two.
Austin Coleman was joined in the individuals race by Aaron Vankempen who was the final Lion to finish the tournament. Vankampen finished in 94th.
The Lions will play their final tournament of the fall in two weeks as they head to Rome, Georgia for the Chick-Fil-A Collegiate. The Berry College hosted tournament will take place October 20-21. Fans are encouraged to stay tuned to PiedmontLions.com for all Piedmont men’s golf schedules, updated statistics, and results.
