Rochester, Mn -
The Minnesota State golf team completed their final round of the NJCAA Division III Golf Championships this afternoon, and by turning in a solid overall performance, earned a third place finish. The Spartans shot a 305 on Day 4, with Chris Swenson leading the charge with a 73, followed closely by Nick Kress (75) and Mason Landborg (76). Swenson's 7th place overall finish earned him All-American honors on a memorable season. Mason Landborg joins Swenson as a 2nd team All-American, while Nick Kress earned Honorable Mention honors as well.
M-State golf was 3rd nationally in 2016 as well, and since 2012 have finished in the top five each season. The Spartans claimed a National Championship in 2012.
For 2017, Georgia Military College (GA) claimed the top spot with a 1215 overall, while Columbus State CC (OH) turned in a second-place performance at 1239. At 1248 overall M State was successful in putting some distance between themselves and fourth-place College of DuPage (IL), who shot a 1274 over the four rounds.
Jason Retzlaff, head coach of the Spartans noted-
"It was a very fun day as we played a lot of outstanding golf throughout the day. We hit the ball very well as a team and a few more putts fell today compared to previous rounds. Our goals was to shoot the low round of the day and we fell a few shots shy of that-but it was still a great round for our team to finish on. This team really impressed a lot of people in New York with their excellent golf. It's pretty special for our team to bring home the third place trophy. I'm very proud of this great group of young men."
Coach Retzlaff went on to report -
"It was fantastic to see 3 of our players earn All-American honors. Nick Kress knew he needed a good round and went out a got it with a 75. Mason Landborg had an outstanding season and this truly capped it off with a great week. Chris Swenson led the way for us this week and capped his career with back to back All American honors and two team top 3. He is a special player and has left a wonderful legacy on our golf program."
Complete scores and honors for the M-State squad is as follows:
Chris Swenson- 301 (79-74-75-73) (7th Overall- 2nd team All-American)
Mason Landborg- 309 (75-80-78-76) (10th Overall- 2nd team All-American)
Nick Kress- 312 (80-79-78-75) (17th Overall- Honorable Mention All-American)
Will Tickel- 326 (80-82-83-81) (T-34th)
Kyle Boe- 339 (88-82-85-84) (T-60th)
Final scores, standings and results are available at: http://jccjayhawks.com/events/njcaa-stats
Story courtesy of M-State athletics and MCAC Sports