Blue Raiders get hot early, nearly overtake Southern Miss in final round of Jim Rivers Intercollegiate

Tuesday, September 13

Choudrant, La.

Middle Tennessee

Jim Rivers Intercollegiate

9/13/2022 5:08:00 PM | Men's Golf

By: Thomas Donley, MT Athletics

CHOUDRANT, La. — Seventeen birdies on the front nine helped propel Middle Tennessee men's golf to the top of the leaderboard Tuesday in the final round of the Jim Rivers Intercollegiate, but the Blue Raiders cooled off on the back nine to finish in second place, one stroke behind Southern Miss.

MTSU recorded a collective 276 (-12) in the third round and finished with a 54-hole score of 837 (-27).

Owen Stamper equaled his collegiate best with a score of 66 (-6) Tuesday, using six birdies and an eagle. The Scottsville, Ky., native finished all three rounds of the tournament under par, placing second individually at 206 (-10), eclipsing his previous personal best by one stroke.

Jegers 5-under on the front nine, birdieing five of the first seven holes he played. Bogeys on three of the last five holes of the day took him out of the individual lead as he settled for a tie for third at 207 (-9).

Michael Barnard played bogey-free golf Tuesday to the tune of a 68 (-4), moving up from a tie for 51^st to a tie for 19^th individually at 212 (-4).

Carter Maneth completed the first tournament of his collegiate career tied for 44^th at 216 (E) after carding a 72 (E) Tuesday. Gavin Clements rounded out the lineup at 218 (+2), tying for 60^th after a 76 (+4) in the third round.

Competing as an individual, Markus Varjun carded a 73 (+1), wrapping up the event tied for 86^th at 222 (+6).

Southern Miss' Thongpipat Rattanayanon won the individual title at 205 (-11).

By the Numbers
837 – The Blue Raiders' 837 was the ninth-best 54-hole score in program history.
-12 – MTSU's 12-under score was tied for the best score in the third round.
-6 – MTSU was 6-under on par 4 holes, the lowest mark in the field. Jegers' 9-under performance led all individuals.
32 – Barnard moved up 32 spots on the leaderboard in the final round.

Head coach Mark McEntire on his team's first tournament of the year
"It was a great week for our team. Losing by a shot hurts, but this team will learn from this and have plenty of chances in the future. Great week for Owen and Kevin. Both played great and can still improve, which is icing on the cake. Great bogey-free 68 from Michael in the final round, and a very solid performance from Carter in his first tournament as a Blue Raider. We have a very good team, and I wish the SMU tourney was next week."

Blue Raider Notes

The Blue Raiders' three eagles in the tournament were the most by any team.
MTSU finished second in the field with 60 birdies.
Stamper's 4-under showing on par 3 holes was tied for the best among the 124-player field.
The Blue Raiders' 276 in the third round equaled the 16^th-best round on record and the fifth-best third round.
MTSU next competes at SMU's Trinity Forest Invitational, held Oct. 2-4 in Dallas, Texas.