HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fl.—Ryan Dunn and Jackson Hiller both fired 71 on the final day of the NCAA Division III Men’s Golf National Championships, leading Oglethorpe to a 16th-place finish at Mission Resort and Club. The Stormy Petrels bounced back after a tough third day to secure their sixth straight top-16 finish at the national championships.
Dunn, who was the individual leader through 36 holes of the event, settled in to seventh overall, marking the seventh highest national finish by a Petrel all-time. He finished 4 under par after two sub-70 rounds across the first two days then a 1 under par 71 to finish out the tournament.
“I’m both excited and disappointed in our results this week,” said head coach Jim Owen. “I’m excited for making the cut for the 25th time in 27 years. Our teams and individuals ground through a tough course, an elite field and difficult conditions to earn our way to play the final two rounds. It was disappointing that we couldn’t secure our 17th top-10 finish in program history. That was the first goal for this underclassman-laden team this year.”
Hiller followed next behind Dunn at 3 over for the tournament to take 33rd and was named to the all-America first team during the post-tourney awards ceremony. Hiller previously this season earned Southern Athletic Association athlete of the year honors after medaling at the conference championships. He also earned PING all-region and was named a finalist for the Jack Nicklaus national player of the year award.
“We had a solid start with a 7 over 291 on day one, followed it up with a spectacular 4 over 292 on the championship course, and found ourselves in ninth place on target for our top-10 goal and eying a top-four finish and a trophy,” Owen said. “Alas, it was not to be. We broke down in round three starting on the difficult front nine of El Campeon. We didn’t hold up through those treacherous first eight holes and by the time we got to nine through 18, the scoring holes, our heads had spun off and we couldn’t take advantage of those final 10 holes to get ourselves back in the top 10.”
Sophomore Ryan Callaham and freshman Barton Abstein both stepped up in a big way for the Petrels in their championships debut. Callaham landed 192nd overall after bookending his week with a pair of 75s. Abstein finished one stroke and four places behind in 196th. He posted his best scores on the first two days, shooting 74 at Las Colinas then 76 on El Campeon.
Sophomore Corbin Scott, making his second appearance at the national championships, posted solid rounds on days two and three. He placed 218th overall.
“This was the youngest team we have taken to the NCAA Championships in over 15 years,” Owen continued. “The five guys we took to the championships this week have totaled only five combined NCAA appearances. We didn’t have a lot of experience, but we had the proper amount of toughness that it took to make the cut and make a good showing for Oglethorpe.”
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