Men’s Golf Notches Best Finish Since September at Racer Intercollegiate

As the season winds down, men’s golf took its talents to Paducah, Kentucky, for the Racer Intercollegiate, hosted by Murray State. Fourteen teams took part in the event, which began on April 6 and wrapped up on April 7. No border or in-state rivals met the Bison in Kentucky, so there was a lack of rivalry drive for NDSU. As coach Miller wraps up his first season at NDSU, the team is trying to finish strong after a rough patch at the beginning of the spring season. Coach Miller grabbed his third-highest finish of the season, and the best result for the Bison since they opened the season with back-to-back victories. It was an extremely consistent outing for North Dakota State; the team finished with a total score of 865(+1). In the opening round, the team shot their lowest total with a 287(-1). They followed this up by staying close in the second and third rounds with a 289(+1) in both rounds. Dayton and Murray State tied for third behind the Bison with a total of 870(+6), while Chattanooga claimed victory with a 20-stroke lead at 845(-19).

On the individual side of things, senior Jake Skarperud led the way for NDSU with a fourth-place finish. Opening the first day, he shot a 213(-3), and in round two, he shot one under par at 71(-1). His lowest total was a 69(-3). In round three, Skarperud struggled slightly, shooting his worst round of the three with a 73(+1). Finishing in a three-way tie for fifth place was senior leader Rylin Petry with a 214(-2). Petry had an opposite showing to Skarperud, as Petry would improve with each round that passed. Petry opened shooting one over at 73(+1), then shooting one under at 71(-1). Petry finished, 70(-2), tied for the third lowest total in the final round.

Third for the Bison and just missing out on the top ten was standout freshman Carter White. He finished in a four-way tie for 12th place, shooting an even 216. In the opening round, White started things with an even 72. The second round would be the round that gave him the most trouble as he shot a 74(+2), but he bounced back with a 70(-2) to match Petry and finish even. Fellow freshman, Joey Mackinac, would find his way into the top 30 as an independent representative of NDSU with a 220(+4) to finish in a six-way tie for 27th place. Mackinac shot very consistently for a freshman, with the two opening rounds both seeing him finish one over par at 73(+1) and finishing the closing round with a 74(+2) — a strong showing from the younger side of the team.

Senior Gabe Benson and freshman Andrew Ballou both tied for 49th place with four others. The pair finished with a 224(+8). Ballou shot a 71(-1) in the opening round, Benson finished close with a 73(+10) in round two, and both shot a 75(+3). In the final round, Benson caught Ballou with a 76(+4); Ballou shot a 78(+6), the highest round of any Bison.

Men’s golf has one last regular-season meet. They will head to Iowa to take part in the Hawkeye Invitational on April 20 and 21.