Shea Sylvester and Taylor Davis turned in the best scores for the Lee men's golf team on Tuesday as the Flames placed fifth in the 15-team Argonaut Invitational played at the Tiger Point Golf Club.
Both Sylvester and Davis fired 2-over par scores of 74. Sylvester earned a spot on the all-tournament team after finishing with a 54-hole total of 213, good enough for a three-way tie with Chandler Blanchet (West Florida) and Markus Lindberg (Missouri-St. Louis), but Blanchet tallied the best round of the day (68).
Hugo Bernard (St. Leo) won medalist honors (210) and Alberto Hernandez (Shorter University) rounded out the top five in the medalist competition (214).
While Sylvester was placing second, Adam Wright (222) had an 18th place total. Davis came in at 226. Corey Sheppard was at 233 and Peyton Sliger rounded out the Lee scoring with a 235.
Missouri-St. Louis won the team title (872). St. Leo was second (875) followed by four Gulf South Conference programs, host West Florida (879), Delta State (885), fifth place Lee (889) and North Alabama (890).
All four of these clubs plus other members of the conference will be going after the Gulf South championship which will be held at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Muscle Shoals, Ala. on April 17-19.
In Pensacola, FL, playing in one of the most competitive fields in NCAA Division II golf, the Lee women placed second out of 18 teams in the annual Argonaut Invitational tournament.
Rollins College ranked second nationally, claimed top honors with a 54-hole total of 302-305-309 – 916. The Lady Flames, ranked 22nd going into what is described as a South Region Preview, are almost assured to move up in the rankings after placing second with a 304-308-313 – 925 finish.
West Florida, the host team for the event staged at the Pointe Marcus Golf Club, posted a third place finish with a 311-315-304 – 980. The Argos are currently ranked ninth. Nova Southeastern, ranked sixth, captured the fourth spot with a 307-321-306 – 934, while Florida Tech, listed as the No. 1 team going into this week's event, settled for fifth place, 306-312-317 – 935.
Six other nationally ranked teams took part in the loaded field, Montevallo (4th), St. Leo (5th), Lynn (7th), Flager (13th), Armstrong State (21st) and Limestone (26th).
"I couldn't be more proud of the team this week," said coach John Maupin. "To come into the regional preview and beat six top 10 teams nationally speaks for itself.
"I was most proud of the way the team competed on what can be a very frustrating course. It demanded mental toughness and I thought our ladies really showed great toughness every round.
"We did not get off to a great start today and it would have been easy to lie down but we showed a lot of resiliency down the stretch.
"We gained some really good experience that we hope to see again in few weeks during the NCAA Regionals."
While the team was battling for top honors, senior Bernadette Little was doing the same in the medalist competition. After rounds of 73-77-76 (226), Little entered into a three-way playoff with Halley Ledbetter (Rollins) and Shannon McKew (Florida Southern). Ledbetter rolled in a 40-foot putt for a birdie on the second playoff hole to capture top honors. McKew recorded a par and Little settled for third place. "Bernadette played great golf in all three rounds," said Maupin.
Callie Kitchens (75-78-80) and Sam Burrus (81-74-78) tied for 13th place with 233 totals. Cailey Gino posted a 75-82-81 – 238 and Caroline Moore rounded out the individual scoring with an 83-79-79 – 241.
The Lady Flames will now prepare for the Gulf South Conference Tournament which will be held at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Muscle Shoals, Ala. on April 17-19.