Men's Results (PDF)
Women's Results (PDF)
FINDLAY, Ohio – The second annual Great Midwest Fall Invitational was interrupted by rain showers but 27 holes were still counted as the second round officially concluded on Tuesday at the Findlay Country Club.
Tournament host Findlay, a first-year member institution of the Great Midwest, won both men’s and women’s team titles and secured individual medalist honors.
The Oilers finished first in the 11-team men’s field and first out of nine participating women’s programs. Trevecca won last year’s men’s and women’s titles in the inaugural offering that was held at Shaker Run in Lebanon.
The first 12 groups teed off during the final round with intermittent breaks, but the final group, set to tee off at 11:10 a.m ET, didn’t get started until 1:10 p.m. because of weather delays.
Several groups completed the full 18 holes, but since everyone did not complete all the way, the tournament was shortened to 27 counting towards the final scoring.
The expanded tournament field wasn’t necessarily the first time Findlay, Hillsdale, Ohio Dominican and Walsh, have went against other G-MAC schools. Men’s golf features different regional competitions at courses like Harborside or at Fox Run where Midwest Region teams from the Great Midwest, GLIAC and GLVC, compete head-to-head.
The women played a yardage of 6,036 yards on a par-72 layout while the men tackled yardage of 6,747 yards, also on a par-72 course setup.
Findlay sophomore Luke Kelly stole the show in the opening round with an ace on the par-3 12th hole. He holed out from 158 yards with a 9-iron, setting the stage for an 18-round score of 70 (-2).
Kelly finished with a 27-hole score of 105 (-3) to finish first among all competitors. The Oilers had a team score of 436 and won by a total of seven strokes over runner-up Malone. Kelly’s teammates Cameron Bruce and Justin Roth each finished in the top 10 individually.
Malone’s Kyle Barnett was the men’s runner-up by one shot while Trevecca’s Blain Turner and Hillsdale’s Liam Purslow tied for third. Walsh’s Drew Savage and Bruce tied for fifth as six players finished with a tournament score of even par or better.
The Pioneers had the best half-round team score on Tuesday as Barnett and Jarrod Kasunick each carded a pair of birdies.
Findlay pulled away in the women’s race to eventually win by a 31-stroke margin against defending tournament champ Trevecca. The Oilers had all five starters finished in the top 12 and Kelsey Koesters tied for fifth as an individual.
Junior Makenzie Torres, the current Great Midwest league leader in scoring average paced the field with a 27-hole total of 110. Teammates Kristina Kniesly was third, Samantha Kellstrom finished tied for fifth with Koesters and Meredith Whipper was solo seventh. Samantha Hatter tied for 12th.
Finishing second was 2017 G-MAC Championship runner-up Rachael McMahan of Trevecca. The sophomore was just strokes off the pace of Torres in what is shaping up to be an intriguing head-to-head battle in the spring.
Malone’s Christina Williams was in third as the Pioneers finished fourth while third-place Ohio Dominican was led by Emma Romine and Abby Swenson, who both tied for 12th.
The first selection for Great Midwest Women’s Golf Athlete of the Week will be released tomorrow morning for events played Sept. 11-17.