Hansen Paces Chargers in Opening Round of NJCAA National Tourney
Aaron Frey
Monday, May 21, 2018 8:41 PM
Athletics
FOLEY, AL
Sophomore Ryan Hansen (Neponset, Ill./Kewanee) put together a strong finish to his round to pace the Carl Sandburg College men’s golf team Monday in the first round of the NJCAA Division II Championship at GlenLakes Golf Club.
Hansen, making his second straight appearance at nationals, finished with an 11-over-par 83, but he played 1 under over his final nine holes. The Chargers, who started their round on the back nine, totaled 350 as a team and are 20th with three rounds to play.
Hansen bogeyed the par-5 first but didn’t make another bogey the rest of the day. He birdied two of his final four holes — the par-5 sixth and par-4 eighth.
Freshman Brayden Reece (Monmouth, Ill./Monmouth-Roseville) posted an 86 for the Chargers. Freshman Bryce Grafton (Orion, Ill./Orion) finished at 90, and freshman Brady Grafton (Orion, Ill./Orion) bounced back from a difficult start with a 3-over 39 on the front to card a 91. Brady Grafton’s final nine holes included five pars and a birdie. Sophomore Michael Curry (Petersburg, Ill./PORTA) came in with a 94.
“We got off to a tough start, but the good thing is we have three days left to try to make up for it,” Chargers coach Ryan Twaddle said. “It’s a long tournament, and we can’t let a round like this keep us down all week. We just have to build on some of the positives we had today, especially late in the round.”
Tyler (Texas) shot 289 to lead by two strokes over Mississippi Gulf Coast and Parkland.
Kean Kontor of Southeast (Neb.) shot 2 under to be atop the individual leaderboard. Eight players are at 1 under.
The Chargers continue the tournament with the second round at 7 a.m. Tuesday.
NJCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championship leaderboard