Nicholls golf team unable to sustain promising start in Bubba Barnett tournament

A promising start didn’t hold up for the Nicholls golf team in the Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate held at RidgePointe Country Club in Jonesboro, Ark.

Behind an opening-round 70 by junior Diego Prat Cruza, the Colonels shot a team total of 290 in Monday’s opening round of the two-day event to place 11th in the 16-team field.

The promising start would not last as the Colonels shot 313 in the second round and 300 in the final round for a team total of 903 to finish last in the field at +39.

“We can play well in bits and spurts, but you have to hold it together,” Nicholls coach James Schilling said. “It’s the game at any sport, especially at this level. We shot 300 (Tuesday), coming in with sloppy bogies and a double-bogie. That round could have easily been 295 or 296.

“The encouraging thing is that you can see the players have the ability to play maybe even a little bit better than I thought at times in spurts, but you still have to put it all together over 54 holes for it to really be meaningful.

Host Arkansas State won the team title with a score of 817, which was 47 under par.

Memphis finished second with a team score of 830. Jacksonville State was third at 834. Rounding out the top five were Murray State at 845, with UT-Martin fifth at 848.

The individual winner of the event was Erik Jansson of Jacksonville State University. He shot rounds of 65, 68, and 67 for a 200 total at -16.

Prat Cruza finished as the top individual for Nicholls. After the opening-round 70, he shot 80 in the second round and 71 in the final round for a 221 total to finish in a tie for 59th in a field of 88 golfers.

“The encouraging thing is a guy that I didn’t even bring on the first trip, Diego, had two rounds under par for this tournament. That’s good playing. That’s what you need when you have a young team. He’s a guy that’s young here, but he is a junior college player. That’s what you are hoping you are going to get when he gets acclimated with everything. He’s got some tournament experience. You need a guy like that to stand up and help you out with some scores you can count, which he did,” Schilling said.

Dylan Weber finished in 79th place after shooting rounds of 73, 78, and 78 for a 229 total.

Chase Pochylko ended in a tie for 80th following rounds of 74, 76, and 80 for a 230 total.

Jack Moro placed 82nd with scores of 73, 82, and 76 for a 231 total.

Mickael Najmark finished in a tie for 85th following rounds of 80, 79, and 75 and a 234 total.

The higher second-round scores, Schilling said, can be attributed in part to play 36 holes on the opening day – something that can be a challenge for a youthful team like the Colonels are fielding this year.

“These guys really don’t have a experience playing 36 holes in one day. I think they kind of wore down a little bit. I think that’s kind of what happened there. Hopefully, they will learn from that,” the Nicholls coach said.

Individually, finishing second behind Jansson was Esteban Vazquez at -15.

Rounding out the top five were all Arkansas State golfers. Thomas Schmidt placed third at -14, while Jack Maxey finished fourth at -13, and Pierce Johnson fifth at -12.

Along with Nicholls, other Southland Conference teams competing in the event were UNO, Incarnate Word, Houston Christian, Southeastern Louisiana, and Texas-A&M-Commerce.

UNO finished first among Southland teams in seventh place at -9 and a 855 total.

UIW tied for ninth after finishing with an even par 864 total. HCU was 11th at +7 and 871 total, SLU placed 13th at +12 and 876 total. Texas A&M-Commerce finished 14th after shooting +14 and a 878 total.

“I think we have a measuring stick for where we are within the rest of the league. This is about what I thought, maybe a little more advanced with some of the scores some of the players were able to shoot,” Schilling said.

Next for the Colonels will be the LaTour Intercollegiate, which Nicholls will be hosting Oct. 23-24 in Mathews.

Familiarity with the home course, Schilling said, should lead to a better showing for his young Colonels, but that they will have to prove it on the golf course.

“I know my freshmen have the ability to play well, perhaps a little bit better. It remains to be seen if they can do it under tournament competition. That’s what I need to see coming up to LaTour. Yes, it’s LaTour. Yes, they know the golf course, but it’s still tournament competition. Which ones will be able to handle that under those regards. So, we’ll see how it turns out,” the Nicholls coach said.