Southland Conference
Kats Repeat As Champs, J. T. Taylor Top Individual
4/22/2015 5:38:00 PM | Men's Golf
Sam Houston State rallied in the final round to edge McNeese State to claim the 2015 Southland Conference Men's Golf Championship at the Stonebridge Ranch Country Club.
The Bearkats had four golfers place in the top 12 to claim their second consecutive league title and fourth overall. Sam Houston shot a 5-over par 293 in the final round to win by two strokes over the Cowboys.
The Kats shot a three round total of 881 (288-300-293). After concluding the second round Wednesday morning, the Bearkats trailed McNeese by two strokes heading into the final 18 holes; however, Sam Houston outshot McNeese by four to claim the league's automatic berth into one of six NCAA regionals, May 14-16. The Bearkats will find out where they will be heading during the selection show May 4 at 9 a.m. on the Golf Channel.
On Wednesday, Sam Houston senior J.T. Taylor carded a 1-under par 71 to give him a three-round total of 2-under par (70-72-71–213) to help him lay claim to the individual medalist honors. Taylor, who is the only player to shoot par or better in all three rounds, became the eighth Bearkat to win medalist honors.
Also placing in the top 12 for Sam Houston were senior Zach Cabra, who tied for fifth at 6-over par (73-78-71–222), and sophomore Andrew Ertel (72-76-78–226) and freshman Jake McCrory (76-77-73–226), both of whom tied for 12th at 10-over par.
McNeese State took the lead after shooting a tournament-best 292 in the second round but fell short of winning its first league title since 1979. The Cowboys, who shot 883 (294-292-297), were led by three players who finished in the top 10.
Junior Martin Eriksson was the top finisher for McNeese, tying for third at 3-over par (74-71-74–219) followed by a pair of freshmen with Andreas Krokeide, who tied for fifth at 6-over par (71-72-79–222), and Robert MacIntyre, who tied for ninth at 8-over par (81-70-73–224).
Rounding out the top five for the individuals were senior Pep Angles, who finished second at 2-under par (75-76-70–214), Southeastern Louisiana junior Lawrence Allan, who tied for third at 3-over par (75-70-74–219), and Southeastern Louisiana senior Grady Brame (71-77-74–222) and Lamar junior Gregory Wiggins (71-77-74–222), who were in the four-way tie for fifth place at 6-over par.
