Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | Hawk Talk Monthly — February 2018 – http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/935355-february-2018
PALM COAST, Florida – The University of Iowa men’s golf team posted two convincing victories on Sunday to finish B1G Match Play with a 2-2 record. The Hawkeyes only dropped one individual match all day after beating Ohio State (6-0) in the third round and Maryland (4-2) in the final round. Purdue, Iowa’s first-round opponent, and Michigan State were co-champions of the tournament.
Matthew Walker and Alex Moorman each finished the tournament with three individual wins. Walker extended his career match play record to 10-2. Alex Schaake and Benton Weinberg each had two victories, while Sam Meuret and Jack Simpson came away with one win a piece.
Iowa’s day began with a shutout over the Buckeyes in an abbreviated match that went nine holes due to fog.
No match against the Buckeyes was ever in jeopardy as five of six Hawkeyes led the entire match. Meuret was 1-down after six holes, but won the seventh hole with a par, won the eighth hole with a birdie, and halved the last hole with a birdie to complete the clean sweep for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa’s fourth, fifth, and sixth golfers carded three bogey-free rounds with seven total birdies. Simpson won 4-and-3 against Ohio State’s Josh Wick in six holes.
With 9.5 points after round-robin play, the Hawkeyes were placed in the ninth-place match against Maryland of the Big Ten East, who scored 8.5 points in the first three rounds. This match was the first time Iowa played at the Conservatory Course.
Walker halved the first hole against Maryland’s number two golfer, David Kocher, and went on to lead the rest of the match in a 4-and-3 victory. Walker had three birdies during a six-hole stretch and was 5-up after 11 holes.
Schaake parred the 17th hole to secure a victory over Maryland’s number one golfer, Peter Knade. Moorman never trailed in his 1-up victory over Maryland’s Chris Navarro.
Iowa’s third and fourth golfers — Meuret and Weinberg — tied their matches that featured many lead changes.
Round 3: Iowa 6, Ohio State 0
1) Alex Schaake (UI) def. Daniel Wtterich (OSU), 1-up
2) Matthew Walker (UI) def. Will Grimmer (OSU), 2-up
3) Benton Weinberg (UI) def. Caden Orewiler (OSU), 2-and-1
4) Sam Meuret (UI) def. Will Voetsch (OSU), 1-up
5) Alex Moorman (UI) def. Jeg Coughlin III (OSU), 3-and-2
6) Jack Simpson (UI) def. Josh Wick (OSU), 4-and-3
Final Round: Iowa 4, Maryland 2
1) Alex Schaake (UI) def. Peter Knade (MD), 2-and-1
2) Matthew Walker (UI) def. David Kocher (MD), 4-and-3
3) Benton Weinberg (UI) drew Tim Colanta (MD), AS
4) Sam Meuret (UI) drew Evan Santa (MD), AS
5) Alex Moorman (UI) def. Chris Navarro (MD), 1-up
6) Bennett Buch (MD) def. Jack Simpson (UI), 2-up
COACH STITH’S COMMENTS ON ROUND 3
“It was a great response and a decisive victory. Everyone jumped on their opponent early and never let up. We only trailed in one match.”
COACH STITH’S COMMENTS ON FINAL ROUND
“We were disappointed with yesterday’s results, so today’s performance was very important. We gained some valuable experience in pressure situations. That’s when your weaknesses are exposed. Now we have a good idea of what we need to work on before Spring Break. Winning 10 out of 12 points takes more than one or two guys. Today’s wins was a collective team effort.”
NEXT TOURNAMENT
Iowa will return to action in a month on March 12, at the Southern Intercollegiate in Athens, Georgia.
