Despite harsh weather, the Kent State men’s golf team finished third out of 15 teams at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate.

The tournament was hosted in Mobile, Alabama by the University of South Alabama.

“We played well,” coach Jon Mills said. “Everyone was in it, which is great to see.”

The team was tied for second two out of the three days it competed, but the third round left them just one under par. 

“I think we just got off to a slow start today and it hurt us,” Mills said. “Even though it was cold, the conditions were actually pretty scorable. Our guys made a couple of mistakes, so we kept trying to catch up when other teams were doing well.”

The Flashes had a 9-under 279 the first round, a 6-under 282 the second round and a 1-under 287 the third round.

Despite the third round not being the Flashes’ best performance, they beat good teams including the University of Louisville and University of Alabama at Birmingham. 

“They made a couple birdies toward the end of the round and separated us from teams that were really close,” Mills said. “We were tied with probably two or three holes left and we ended up beating them. The silver lining with finishing third is beating some good teams.”

Senior Josh Gilkison finished in ninth for the Flashes with a score of 5-under 211. 

“Josh played well all tournament,” coach Mills said. “That’s very encouraging going forward for sure.”

The team is continuing to set high standards for winning, but Mills said they were able to take away a lot from this tournament.

“I want our guys to focus on what they did the last two days,” said coach Mills. “So many good things came from this event. To be in contention within a good tournament the first week out is big for their confidence.”

Pilar Lewis is a sports reporter. Contact her at [email protected].