Troy University Athletics
Monday, October 17
Hopkinsville, Ky.
Troy University
vs
Austin Peay State University
Trojans Look To Rebound in F&M Bank Intercollegiate
10/16/2011 8:00:00 AM | Golf (M)
After struggling last week to an 11th place finish at Louisiana Tech, the Troy University men's golf team will look to rebound this week when they compete in the F&M Bank APSU Intercollegiate at the Links at Novadell in Hopkinsville, Ky.
The Trojans have a history of success in the tournament, which is hosted by Austin Peay and will feature 16 teams this year. Troy won the event in 2006 and finished tied for fourth last year.
Senior Ricky Casko, who is coming off one of his worst collegiate performances a week ago, earned a top 10 finish at Novadell last year, posting three scores in the 60s and finishing a career-best 10 under-par for the tournament.
“We have a history there after winning in 2006 and we played decently there last year,” Trojans coach Matt Terry said. “It was the start of some better play for us last year. Ricky Casko played really well at this tournament last year, posting his low score of the year. He didn't play well at our last event, but we expect him to play well this weekend.
“I hope we can forget about the last event we played and play a lot better this week. We got some good work in this week at practice. The guys are a little more prepared to played this week.”
The favorite going into the F&M Bank Intercollegiate is Jacksonville State, which is led by freshman Tomasz Anderson, who is currently ranked No. 1 in the nation with a 67.00 scoring average.
The Gamecocks won the tournament last year with an impressive 42-under par score of 822 that included a team 259 in the second round. JSU set tournament records for low 18, 36 and 54 hole scores.
“Jacksonville State won this last year and is playing well this year,” Terry said. “Austin Peay will have the home course advantage. It is a golf course that you can score on. We shot under par last year.
“They have lengthened it some, but we should be able to easily put up some season-low scores. The forecast is calling for highs in the 80s on Monday but dropping into the upper 50s on Tuesday. That will make the second day more interesting.”
While Casko will be looking to rekindle the magic he found at this event last year, the rest of the Trojans, with the exception of sophomore Will Thompson, will be competing at the tournament for the first time.
“Will Thompson has been real steady,” Terry said. “He doesn't do anything really badly. He does everything pretty good, keeps the ball in play. If he rolls the ball well with his putter, then he will have a chance to play well.”
The rest of the Troy squad for this event includes freshmen Tolver Dozier, Jake Tucker and Wil Clowdus. Another freshman, Phillip Brennen, will compete as an individual. This will be the first collegiate event for Clowdus.
“Jake Tucker was the low player at our last event,” Terry said. “He is a real gritty player. We can tell that he is still going to play well when he isn't playing well.”
Other teams in the large field for the tournament including Belmont, Binghanmton, Eastern Kentucky, Lipscomb, Morehead State, Samford, SIU Edwardsville, South Dakota, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech, UT-Martin, Western Illinois and Wright State.
The Links at Novadell will play 7,132 yards for a par of 72, 246 yards longer than last year. The event will open with 36 holes of play on Monday starting at 8 a.m. The final 18 holes will be played on Tuesday starting at 9 a.m.
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