Waller Finishes 2nd, Lakers Finish 3rd At CCAC Championship.
WILMINGTON, Ill. – Roosevelt's quest for a fourth consecutive Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference men's golf title fell short Tuesday as the Lakers finished third in the conference championship at Cinder Ridge GC in Wilmington.
The Lakers shot 57-over par as a team to finish 19 shots behind Olivet Nazarene, who ran away with the event over the final 18 holes Tuesday. Roosevelt finished the opening 18 holes Monday in third place just four shots behind the leaders then moved into second after Tuesday's morning round. However, some unfortunate scores down the stretch sent the Lakers into third by two strokes.
On an individual level, freshman Marc Waller had a remarkable two days to finish second overall at 7-over for the event. He shot a 75 in Monday's opening round then shot 76 Tuesday morning after bogeying the final two holes. He responded with an even-par 72 in the afternoon, cancelling out his three bogeys with three birdies. Waller was the second-best player on the par-3s in the two rounds, finishing 1-over on those holes.
Alvaro Pardo Gutierrez was Roosevelt's leading golfer after the first round with a topsy-turvy 74 that started and ended with birdies. He had a rough start Tuesday on the front nine to finish with a 79 in the morning before coming back to shoot 74 in the afternoon with five birdies. The senior finished eighth at 11-over, 10 shots behind the winner.
Thomas Peluchon finished in a tie for 12th at 19-over, following up an opening-round 81 with two rounds of 77 on Tuesday. Matthew Webb finished in a tie for 22nd overall despite being one of eight golfers who shot under par on the par-5s, a group that also included Waller. He was 3-under on the par-5s on Monday then added two more birdies in Tuesday's morning round on the longest holes on the course.
Charlie Curtis began the event for the Lakers in the number three positions, but did not play Tuesday after shooting 85 on Monday. Justin Rodriguez took his place in the lineup and made three birdies en route to a 75 in the morning before carding an 85 in the afternoon Tuesday.
Roosevelt will wait to see if it earns an at-large invitation to the NAIA Men's Golf Championships when the field is announced on May 10.