Men's Golf Captures Season's Third Team Title at Innisbrook

Monday, October 28

Innisbrook Golf Resort | Palm Harbor, Fla.

James Madison University

Intercollegiate at Innisbrook

Team Trophy Celebration Innisbrook 102919

Men's Golf Captures Season's Third Team Title at Innisbrook

10/29/2019 4:30:00 PM | Men's Golf

@JMUMGolf JMU MG on Instagram Final Results

INNISBROOK, Fla. - The James Madison men's golf team picked up a pair of clutch birdies in the final three holes on Tuesday afternoon, lifting the Dukes to their third team title of the season with a first-place finish at the Intercollegiate at Innisbrook, hosted on the par-71, 7,209-yard Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort.

The Dukes triumphed in a back-and-forth battle with Campbell atop the leaderboard, with the schools trading the lead multiple times across the final nine holes. Sophomore Nick Schlickenrieder and senior Walker Cress then each birdied their final hole to get the Dukes in the clubhouse with a 282 (-2), the lowest round of any team in the field on the final day, and give the Dukes a one-stroke victory over Campbell at 844 (-8) for the week.

The victory was the Dukes' third of the season in just five tournaments, already tied for the second-most in a single season in program history, trailing only the six-win 1995-96 campaign with seven tournaments remaining on the spring schedule.

Freshman Neal Shipley and junior Ignacio Montero led the way on Tuesday, carding the 90-player field's second- and third-lowest rounds on a difficult scoring day with loops of 68 (-3) and 69 (-2), respectively. Shipley jumped 21 spots and into a tie for 18th (215, +2), while Montero picked up his third top-10 finish in four events, tying for seventh (213, E).

In all, the Dukes, who entered the week ranked No. 61, bested six top-70 teams--UCF (16), Houston (28), South Florida (39), Memphis (49), Campbell (62) and East Carolina (68)--on the week, with only Campbell finishing within 10 shots of JMU at day's end. South Florida and Memphis tied for third place at 854 (+2), while Houston and East Carolina tied for fifth at 864 (+12).

Schlickenrieder led the way for the Dukes on the week, playing his final seven holes in a crucial 2-under to climb into the top five for the first time in his career, taking home a tie for fifth at 212 (-1, 72-68-72).

Cress and sophomore George Heath each finished tied for 26th on the week, shooting respective rounds of 73 (+2) and 76 (+5) to close out the JMU scoring in the victory.

Playing as an individual, sophomore Ignacio De Pineda finished one stroke behind the pair in a tie for 29th at 218 (+5, 72-69-77).

QUOTING COACH FORBES
"This was a really good win on a really tough final-day setup. To come here and perform the way we did, taking home the trophy against some really good programs, is an outstanding way to end the fall. We also know that we still have improvements to make over the winter as we get ready for a really challenging spring schedule."

UP NEXT
Having concluded the fall portion of their schedule, the Dukes will resume their 2019-20 campaign on Feb. 14-16, 2020, when they travel to Martin Downs Golf Club in Palm City, Fla. to take part in the UNCG Martin Downs Collegiate.