The Chattanooga Mocs jumped from ninth to a fifth-place finish at the Old Waverly Collegiate. Seniors Davis Bunn (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Chris Robb (Aberdeenshire, Scotland) led the way.
Bunn tied for ninth shooting one-under par 215 which was two ahead of Robb who tied for 17th at plus one (217). Robb completed his suspended round this morning, a one-under 71, and then fired minus-three 69 to key a Mocs four-under par effort over the final 36 holes.
Mississippi State was just a bit better this day. The host won by one over Cincinnati. The Bulldogs shot 859 (-5), while the Bearcats checked in at 860. Ole Miss came in third at 862. MSU’s Barrett Edens and Marco Iten (Austin Peay) tied for medalist honors at minus nine (207).
The Mocs started the day at minus one with just three holes to play. They took advantage of the few holes remaining adding five birdies for a five-under tally of 283. Bunn (70) and Robb (71) were joined under par by Wes Gosselin (71) and Liam Johnston (71).
The squad followed with a 289 (+1) in the afternoon. Robb’s 69 was joined by Johnston at level par 72, Ewan Scott’s (St. Andrews, Scotland) 73 and Gosselin’s 75.
Four individuals played in Alabama at Jacksonville State’s Grub Mart Intercollegiate at the same time their teammates finished up in Mississippi. Three posted top 10 finishes with another just outside tying for 11th. Had the quartet competed as an official team, it would have captured the title by 11 shots over host Jacksonville State.
Zac Stolz (Sydney, Australia) ended as runner-up shooting six-under par 138 over his 36 holes. He was three ahead of Benni Weilguni (Langenlois, Austria) who tied for third at minus three (141). Brooks Thomas (Chattanooga) was seventh at 144 (E), while Stuart Thomas (Knoxville, Tenn.) tied for 11th at 146 (+2). The foursome totaled seven-under par 569.
The Mocs turn their attention to championship play heading to National Golf Club in Pinehurst, N.C., April 20-22, for the Southern Conference Championship. Chattanooga is the two-time defending champ.