IU advances to National Championship

By the skin of its teeth, the No. 23 IU men’s golf team advanced to their first National Championship since 1996. Needing a 10th place finish at the Central Regionals on Ohio State’s Scarlet Golf Course, IU bested Tennessee by one stroke and achieved their goal, shooting a 901. \nIU Coach Mike Mayer thought the team played far from perfect, but the bottom line was they advanced to nationals like they were capable of doing. \n“We felt this team was good enough to go to the finals and it was a great team effort,” Mayer said. “It wasn’t the best we could play but we fought down the stretch and got the job done.” \nNeeding a rally down the stretch, IU turned to juniors Jorge Campillo and Drew Allenspach. Campillo played a steady tournament and placed 5th overall. Although he was locked into nationals as an individual based on his top-10 finish at regionals, Campillo was happy he didn’t have to enjoy the party alone.\n“It wouldn’t have been a good feeling to go (to nationals) alone and it is nice to go with the team,” Campillo said.\nAllenspach, however, was the deciding factor in the Hoosiers’ finish as he played the final five holes at three-under par.\nAllenspach, who finished 75th after shooting a 73 on the final day of play, said taking things slowly helped him overcome his recent sub-par play.\n“I struggled early in this tournament and have struggled lately (in general),” Allenspach said. “Today I stayed patient and did the best I could and I tied to convince myself we were in it and I needed make birdies.”\nMayer complimented Allenspach for sticking through tough conditions and said he was the difference maker in the Hoosiers’ success.\n“It was difficult and windy and Drew was outstanding down the stretch, shooting a three under par,” Mayer said. “He was the reason we advanced.”\nAlso competing for the Hoosiers was junior Seth Brandon, sophomore Alex Martin and freshman Ren Han, who placed 33rd, 89th and 133rd, respectively. \nWinning the individual title was Oklahoma State’s Kevin Tway, who shot a 214 for the tournament.\nThe National Championship takes place close to home on May 28 in West Lafayette on Purdue’s campus. The Hoosiers have enjoyed a lot of success on this course in the past, carding 1st, 6th and 3rd place finishes over the last three years at Kampen Golf Course. Campillo has enjoyed even greater success, winning individual titles twice in three years while breaking the course record earlier this year.\nMayer said anything can happen in golf and the Hoosiers have as good of a chance as any team at delivering the program its first national title.\n“Golf is a funny sport and we always have a chance if we play well,” he said.