The final results of the 2018 NJCAA Division III Men's Golf National Championship are complete and Minnesota College Athletic Conference member M State-Fergus Falls has finished fourth overall. Chautauqua (NY) Golf Club was the site for the year-end tournament and the Spartan squad came within four shots of a third place finish and crowned a pair of All-American's in the process.
Mason Landborg was third individually and Hunter Moen was sixth, which allowed both student-athletes to qualify for All-America, First Team honors. The double honor marks the first time for M State to have multiple All-America selections in the same season. Additionally, 2018 is the seventh consecutive season that M State has finished in the top five nationally among NJCAA Division III men's golf programs. Jordan Kern provided his Spartan squad his best round of the competition with a 78 in the final round to help secure the streak.
Vincennes University shot a final round 307 on their way to the National Championship with a four day total of 1237.
Final Team Standings for 2018 NJCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship:
1.Vincennes University (Vincennes, IN)
2.Sandhills CC (Pinehurst, NC)
3.Georgia Military College
4. M State- Fergus Falls
5.County College of Morris (Randolph, NJ)
6.Bucks County CC (Newtown, PA)
7.SUNY Adirondack College (Queensbury, NY)
8.Onondaga CC (Syracuse, NY)
9.Massasoit CC (Brockton, MA)
10.Anne Arundel CC (Arnold, MD)
11.College of DuPage (Glen Ellyn, IL)
12.Nassau CC (Garden City, NY)
Spartans Individual Scores for Round Four:
Mason Landborg, 73
Hunter Moen, 77
Jordan Kern, 78
Blake Bloedorn, 87
Nick Kress, 89
Coach Jason Retzlaff on M State at the National Championships:
"While we weren't able to put the magical round together today, they competed very hard and put up a solid final round score. I'm very proud of this team and the season we had. It is a great accomplishment to win the MCAC and Region XIII Championship and to finish 4th in the nation. It was a group of talented players but also young men who were a pleasure to coach."
"Congratulations to Mason Landborg and Hunter Moen on earning NJCAA First-Team All-American honors. Mason was a force all week and showed his firepower leading the field in birdies and eagles. It's rare for a freshman to earn first-team All-American honors, but Hunter's all-around game and mental toughness really shined this week. Hunter played the final six holes today in two under par and finished strong to earn that honor."
"We are going to miss our sophomores. Mason's career at M State speaks for itself as a two time All-American and one of the most talented players we have had in our program. I look forward to watching his golfing career continue at the next level. Nick Kress had a great two seasons including two trips to the National Tournament and All-American honors a year ago. I would also like to thank Kyle Boe and Will Tickel; both sophomores that weren't with us on this trip but gave our program great contributions over the last two years."
Photo courtesy of M State Athletics (From Left to Right: Assistant Coach-Jeff Haukos, Jordan Kern, Hunter Moen, Nick Kress, Mason Landborg, Blake Bloedorn, Head Coach Jason Retzlaff)
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About the Minnesota College Athletic Conference
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is the organizational body for NJCAA-affiliated two-year technical and community college athletic programs in the Minnesota State system. The mission of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference is to advance intercollegiate athletics by providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions. The MCAC is committed to the guiding principles of encouraging the development and success of student athletes, promoting the integrity, honesty and loyalty to member schools as well as upholding the sustainability of conference athletic programs.