AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Coming off a strong fall
season, the Augusta State men’s golf team heads to Orlando,
Fla., this weekend to kick off its spring schedule when the Jaguars
tee off in the Rio Pinar Invitational at Rio Pinar Country
Club.
The Jaguars, who finished runnerup in two of their four fall
events, open their 2009 slate on Monday, Feb. 23 in the two-day,
54-hole event. Sophomore Henrik Norlander paced the team with a
70.75 stroke average during the four fall events. Three Jags,
including senior Janne Kaske and junior Jake Amos, posted sub-73
scoring averages during the fall season.
“We’re coming off a good fall season and I’m
really excited to get going again,” said ASU head coach Josh
Gregory. “The guys are tired of qualifying, are ready to
compete and are ready to see where our games are. We have a great
schedule -- one that should prepare us for the NCAA Regionals and
NCAA Championships. We’re an extremely young team that will
get better as the spring progresses. Once we find the right mix in
our lineup, I look for a very strong spring. Our first and foremost
goal is to get a win, and with a young team, that is crucial. Once
we believe we can win, I expect great things out of our
team.”
Central Florida will serve as the tourney host to the 20-team
field, which includes ASU, Baylor, Connecticut, East Carolina, Iowa
State, Kentucky, Louisville, Memphis, Mercer, UNC Greensboro, Ohio
State, Ole Miss, South Alabama, Southern Miss, South Florida,
Texas-Arlington, Vanderbilt, Virginia Commonwealth and Wichita
State.
UCF captured the 2008 Rio Pinar event while the Knights’ Greg
Forest and Mike Stern shared medalist honors to make it a clean
sweep for the hosts.
Play gets underway at 7:45 a.m. Monday morning at the par-72,
6,978-yard Rio Pinar layout. The final round is slated for an 8:30
a.m. start Tuesday.