Trio of top-20 finishers leads EMCC men’s golf to seventh-place team finish at Lou Hart Invitational
With three top-20 individual finishers, the East Mississippi Community College men’s golf team placed seventh at this week’s Lou Hart Invitational played at Northwood Country Club. The two-day event hosted by Meridian Community College concluded Tuesday afternoon.
MERIDIAN – With three top-20 individual finishers, the East Mississippi Community College men's golf team placed seventh at this week's Lou Hart Invitational played at Northwood Country Club. The two-day event hosted by Meridian Community College concluded Tuesday afternoon.
With consistent team scores of 307 and 306, EMCC's composite 613 total was one shot behind Hinds' sixth-place score (310-302—612). Top-ranked Mississippi Gulf Coast (285-284—569) earned a 17-stroke team victory over host Meridian CC (295-291—586). Third-place East Central (300-297—597) was followed by Jones (297-302—599) and Northeast Mississippi (301-303—604) in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
Individually for the Lions, freshman Pelayo Castillo Alonso, from Spain, led the way with a two-day score of 150 to finish in a four-way tie for 14th place. He improved Monday's opening-round score by four shots with a 2-over-par 73 during Tuesday's final round.
Fellow EMCC freshman Lawson Burton (Fulton, MS/Itawamba Agricultural HS) and reigning All-MACCC performer Lorenzo Ligabue, from Italy, tied for 18th place with 151 totals. Burton followed a 75 with Tuesday's 76, while Ligabue began with Monday's 3-over-par 74 and finished with a 77.
EMCC sophomores Trace Carpenter (Kosciusko, MS/Winona Christian School) and Brian Ludden (Hernando, MS/Hernando HS) finished in a four-way tie for 36th place at 157 with identical scores of 80 and 77 while competing in this week's tournament as individual participants.
Freshmen Whitt Welch (Union, MS/Leake Academy) and Bryce Shivers (Prentiss, MS/Prentiss Christian School) rounded out EMCC's scorecard for this week by placing 48th (81-80—161) and 63rd (82-86—168), respectively, for the Lions.
Jace Duckworth (70-67—137) of host Meridian CC claimed low medalist honors this week with a one-shot victory over Mississippi Gulf Coast's Stanley Campbell (71-67—138).
The East Mississippi men's golf team will next compete at the MACCC Championship, April 7-8, in Corinth. The Northeast Mississippi CC-hosted tournament will be played at Shiloh Ridge.
EMCC will resume women's golf competition next week (March 31-April 1) at the Calhoun Community College Women's Spring Classic. The two-day women's event will be played at Burningtree Country Club in Decatur, Ala.