Scots Jump Four Spots on Final Day of Strimer Invite

Andy Van Horn

One week after making a four-spot move at its own tournament, The College of Wooster golf team put on a repeat performance at the Strimer Memorial Invitational hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University on April 22-23, cutting 16 strokes on its final 18 holes for a two-round score of 624, good enough for seventh-place overall in the 17-team field.

On Saturday, the Fighting Scots carded a score of 320 on the par-71, 6612-yard course at the Dornoch Country Club to tie Wabash College for 11th place. Wooster jumped up four positions on the final day with the fourth-best team score on the par-71, 6738-yard Oakhaven Country Club Golf Course, tallying 304 strokes.

The host Bishops won the team title by one stroke (588-589) over last week’s Nye Intercollegiate winner, Otterbein College. Franklin College (601), DePauw University (605), Olivet College (608), and Transylvania University (612) were the remaining teams to finish ahead of the Scots.

Only two of Wooster’s starting five carded sub-80 scores on the first day, but four accomplished the feat at Oakhaven. Junior Andy Van Horn posted identical rounds of 74 to finish in a team-best tie for ninth (148), while teammate Matt Mellot also posted back-to-back rounds in the 70s, finishing with a 78 at Dornoch and a 76 at Oakhaven to tie for 27th overall (154).

After an uncharacteristic 90 in the first round, Brandon Tylka bounced back with a 77 on the second day to finish in a tie for 76th. Eric Shoger also posted a 77 at Oakhaven and finished with a two-day total of 162 for 62nd, while Sean Glaser rounded out the starting five with a 169 for 80th (83-86).

Four other Scots competed as individuals, led by sophomore Jim Ipema, who carded rounds of 75 and 79 to tie for 27th overall. Patrick Lynch, Mike Becker, and Jason Greenwald rounded out the rest of Wooster’s competitors with two-day totals of 166, 168, and 169, respectively.

Wooster wraps up its regular season next weekend at the North Coast Athletic Conference Championships hosted by Wittenberg University at the Windy Knoll Golf Course in Springfield, Ohio, on April 28-29.