Coon Rapids, Minn. -- Saint John's University won the men's title, while Gustavus Adolphus College captured the women's crown at the 2008 MIAC Golf Championships on Monday afternoon. Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids, Minn., played host to the three-day, 54-hole event.
Saint John's senior Joe Schoolmeesters captured the men's individual title with a three-day total of 218. University of St. Thomas junior Laura Heck claimed the women's title by five strokes with a 238 total. It was the second MIAC individual championship for both Schoolmeesters (2006, 2008) and Heck (2007, 2008).
The team titles for Saint John's men and Gustavus women clinch the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships for both teams. The 2009 NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Golf Championships will be held May 13-16 at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
2008 MIAC Golf Championships Website
MIAC Men's Golf - Day Three Recap
(Courtesy of Ryan Klinkner, Saint John's Athletic Media Relations)
Saint John’s University won its fourth MIAC Men’s Golf Championship in the last five years with a three-day total of 889 (+25) on Monday, Oct. 6. The title clinches the two-time defending national champion Johnnies’ 10th consecutive trip to the NCAA Division III Championship to be held May 13-16, 2009 at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Gustavus Adolphus College claimed second with a 917 (+53), followed by Augsburg College (922, +58), Bethel University (935, +71) and St. Olaf College (936, +72).
SJU’s Joe Schoolmeesters claimed medalist honors for the second time in his career with three-day total of 218 (+2). Schoolmeesters led all individuals as a sophomore at the 2006 MIAC Championship. Augsburg’s Tony Vanyo claimed second place with a 219 (+3) thanks to a one-under par 71 in the final round Monday. Gustavus’ Ricky Copeland finished third (221, +5) for the Gusties.
MIAC Women's Golf - Day Three Recap
(Courtesy of Mike Durbin, Saint Benedict Athletic Media Relations)
The Gustavus Adolphus College women's golf team won its first-ever MIAC Golf Championship with a team score of 980 at Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids on Monday afternoon. The Gusties held off a talented St. Thomas squad that came into this championship having won seven straight league titles. UST finished nine strokes back of the Gusties with a team score of 989.
St. Thomas junior Laura Heck (Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing) captured back-to-back individual MIAC crowns after she carded a 238, five strokes better than runner-ups Katrina Wood (Jr., Duluth, Minn./Marshall) of Carleton, Gustavus’ Kimbra Kosak (Sr., Grand Rapids, Minn.), Concordia’s Afton Pender (Sr., Cohasset, Minn./Grand Rapids), and Carleton’s Laura Knutson (So., Edina, Minn.) who all tied for second with rounds of 243.
Carleton finished in third place (1,028), while Macalester (1,038) and the College of Saint Benedict (1,043) came in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
The Gusties became only the third team to ever win an MIAC title in the championship's 20-year history. St. Thomas and Concordia-Moorhead have each captured league titles.
MIAC Men's Golf - Day Two Recap
(Courtesy of Ryan Klinkner, Saint John's Athletic Media Relations)
Saint John’s University extended its lead to 18 strokes with a second-round 295 (+7) following the second round of the 2008 MIAC Men’s Golf Championship Sunday, Oct. 5.
Gustavus Adolphus College, led by Ricky Copeland’s second-round 71 (-1), enters Monday’s final round in second place with a two-day total of 613 (+37). Augsburg College (617, +41), St. Olaf College (626, +50) and Bethel University (628, +52) round out the top five.
SJU’s (595, +19) Joe Schoolmeesters leads all individuals with a two-day total of 144 (E), followed by Copeland (146, +2) and Augsburg’s Tony Vanyo (148, +4).
The third and final round begins at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 6 at the Bunker Hills G.C. in Coon Rapids.
MIAC Women's Golf - Day Two Recap
(Courtesy of Mike Durbin, Saint Benedict Athletic Media Relations)
The MIAC Women's Golf Championship and the automatic bid to the NCAA Championships are still up for grabs after Sunday's second round at Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids. It appears the conference championship is a two team race between Gustavus Adolphus and St. Thomas. The Gusties lead the Tommies by six strokes going into the third and final round on Monday.
Gustavus has carded a two-day total 657, while St. Thomas, which has won the last seven conference titles, has a team total of 663. Carleton College is in third place with a 693, while Macalester College has a 696.
Individually, St. Thomas junior Laura Heck (Chrishlom, Minn./Hibbing) continues to lead the conference championships with a two-day total of 158. Carleton senior Katrina Wood (Duluth, Minn./Marshall) is tied for second place with Gustavus senior Kimbra Kosak (Grand Rapids, Minn.), both players have carded a 164 after two days.
The third and final round of the MIAC Championships get underway on Monday at 9 a.m.
MIAC Men's Golf - Day One Recap
(Courtesy of Ryan Klinkner, Saint John's Athletic Media Relations)
Led by Joe Schoolmeesters’ one-under par 71, top-ranked Saint John’s University jumped out to an eight-stroke lead following the first round of the 2008 MIAC Men’s Golf Championship Saturday, Oct. 4.
SJU began the three-day tournament with an opening round of 300 (+12). Augsburg College (308, +20) enters the second round in second with a 308 (+12), followed by St. Olaf College and the University of St. Thomas, who each tied for third with a 312 (+24).
Augsburg’s Tony Vanyo (73, +1) enters Sunday’s second round in second, while Concordia College-Moorhead’s Taylor Henrickson (74, +2) is third.
The second round begins at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 5 at the Bunker Hills G.C. in Coon Rapids.
MIAC Women's Golf - Day One Recap
(Courtesy of Mike Durbin, Saint Benedict Athletic Media Relations)
The MIAC Women's Golf Championships got underway in nearly perfect weather conditions at Bunker Hills Golf Course in
Coon Rapids, Minn. on Saturday.
Gustavus Adolphus holds a four stroke first day lead over St. Thomas with a team score of 324. Macalester College is in
third place with a team score of 346, while Carleton College and the College of Saint Benedict are tied for fourth place at
349.
St. Thomas junior Laura Heck (Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing) shot a first round 77, while Gustavus Adolphus first-year player
Taylor Drenttel (Eagan, Minn.) carded a 78.
The second round of the MIAC Championships gets underway on Sunday at 11:30 a.m.
2008 MIAC Men's Golf Championship Preview
The 2008 MIAC Men's Golf Championship will be played this Saturday through Monday, October 4-6 at Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids. Running in conjunction the MIAC Women's Championships, the 2008 Men's Championships will crown 73rd MIAC team champion. The conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships, held in May 2009, will be awarded to the MIAC Champion.
The last 12 MIAC titles have either been won by Gustavus or Saint John's and those two teams will enter the 2008 Championships as the teams to beat. The Gusties grabbed the 2007 MIAC Championship, rallying from five strokes down on the third day to pass Saint John's. The Johnnies put together a strong run in the spring of 2008, to win their second consecutive NCAA Division III Championship. Saint John's was eight strokes out entering the final day of the championship, but managed to take home the title last May in Braselton, Ga.
If team scores from fall meets are an indicator of how the teams will fare at the 2008 Championships, it should be a competitive battle for the title. Saint John's, ranked #1 in the nation, leads the conference in scoring average, but #25 Bethel and Concordia have had strong fall seasons as well. #19 Gustavus, St. Thomas, Augsburg, and St. Olaf are close behind in their averages, but all four have had success in recent years at Bunker Hills. Macalester, Saint Mary's, and Carleton round out the field and all three have the potential to crack the top half of the conference standings.
Individually, Saint John's senior Joe Schoolmeesters will come into the Championships as the favorite. Schoolmeesters, the reigning MIAC Player of the Year, finished second at last season's MIAC Championships, sixth at the 2008 NCAA Championships, and first at the 2006 MIAC Championships. Schoolmeesters also has five other teammates who are in the top eight in the MIAC in scoring average, including senior Joe Daly who is second. Augsburg senior Tony Vanyo has come on strong this fall and is third in the MIAC in stroke average heading into the weekend. Other returning All-Conference golfers from 2007 include St. Thomas' Ben Jensen and Saint John's Joey Polingo.
Complete Men's Golf Championship Preview
2008 MIAC Women's Golf Championship Preview
The 20th annual MIAC Women's Golf Championship will be played this Saturday through Monday, October 4-6 at Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids, Minn. The conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships, held in May 2009, will be awarded to the MIAC Champion. This season will be the third consecutive year the Championship has been played at Bunker Hills and the second Championship played at the same time as the MIAC Men's Championship.
St. Thomas has won the last seven MIAC titles and will need to hold off a strong team from Gustavus to make it eight straight. In the history of MIAC Women's Golf, only two teams, St. Thomas and Concordia have won team titles. Gustavus will have the best shot to be the third team to take home the trophy as the Gusties have played well all fall and lead the conference in stroke average heading into the weekend. Led by 2007 MIAC Medalist Laura Heck, St. Thomas will still challenge the Gusties for the top spot.
St. Thomas, ranked #7 nationally, and #2 Gustavus have finished 1-2 every fall since 2004. Those two will be difficult to knock off the top of the standings, but five teams will give them a challenge. #25 Saint Benedict, #22 Carleton, Macalester, St. Olaf, and Concordia all have scoring averages within nine strokes of each other. This should make for an exciting battle in the middle of the team standings. Bethel in it's first season of sponsoring a team, Saint Mary's, and Augsburg all will enter the field with young teams hoping to compete for a upper tier finish.
A talented field will take to the course in pursuit of the individual title. Reigning champion St. Thomas junior Laura Heck, will be tough to beat as she leads the conference in scoring average coming into the Championship. Macalester's Jordan Matheson, and the Gustavus trio of Kimbra Kosak, Katie Schenfeld, and Kali Griggs should all put in low rounds. St. Olaf's Britta Hendrickson, St. Thomas' Amy Anderson and Augsburg's Johanna Frykmark also return from the 2007 All-Conference team.
Complete Women's Golf Championship Preview