BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The University of Dubuque men's golf team opened up the spring season with a runner-up finish at the Illinois Central College Cougar Preview with a 36-hole total of 574 (-2).
Luke Harwick and
John Dobbe finished in a tie for fifth place after finishing under par (-1).
The tournament was moved from a two-day tournament to a 36-hole one-day tournament on Thursday.
After an opening round 295 that had the Spartans in third place and trailing by 10 strokes through 18 holes, the Spartans rallied to fire off a 279 to close the gap and finish runner-up with a two under par (-2) team total. The host Cougars ended up winning the tournament at five under par (-5). The Spartans' 279 was the best 18-hole round of the tournament.
The duo of Harwick and Dobbe each finished one under par (-1), tying for fifth place to lead the Spartans. After being six over par (+6) through the first 18 holes, Harwick responded with a tournament best 65 on the final 18. Harwick's round of 65 was the lowest single-day round of his Spartans career. Dobbe was consistent on Thursday with rounds of 73 and 70.
Bob Ryan shot two over par (+2) with rounds of 74 and 72, while
Pauly Bloomquist finished a stroke behind his teammate with rounds of 75 and 72 to score a three over par (+3).
Other Spartans in the field on Thursday included
Tyson Malak who finished six over par (+6),
Caleb McCullough scored an eight over par (+8),
Joe LaBarbera was +13, and
Carson Rowe was +22.
Hear from Dustin Bierman
"We got off to a bit of a slow start this morning with our opening round and made a few mistakes we don't normally make. Our guys did a great job of coming back strong in round two and made a great run at it. Luke played great and his round of 65 was impressive and John finished with four straight birdies. Proud of the fight and it's a good start to the year."
Up Next
The Spartans will continue their trip down south with a visit to Terre Haute, Ind. to compete in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate, hosted by Rose-Hulman this weekend on Saturday, March 21 and Sunday, March 22.
