March 25, 2008
TUCSON, Ariz. — Junior Josh Sandman (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) posted his third consecutive top-10 individual finish, helping Notre Dame tie for 10th place at the National Invitational Tournament, which concluded Tuesday at the Omni Tucson National Golf Club (par 72/7,330 yards) in Tucson, Ariz. The Irish carded their best score of the spring season at 19-over par 883 (296-291-296), tying with Tulsa in the 15-team event, which was won by TCU at 854.
Sandman tied for 10th place on the individual ladder at two-under par 214 (71-71-72), becoming the first Notre Dame golfer in eight years to register three consecutive top-10 finishes. Steve Ratay was the last to pull off that feat, doing so during the final three tournaments of the fall 1999 season at the Legends of Indiana (1st), Xavier Invitational (tie-5th) and Louisville Intercollegiate (2nd).
During his current three-tournament run, Sandman has fired an average score of 71.78, ending up tied for third at the USC Collegiate Invitational (220), and tied for sixth at the Schenkel E-Z-GO Invitational (career-low 212) prior to his 10th-place tie at the NIT. Tulsa’s Nicolas Geyger, Kent State’s David Markle and Houston’s Ben Moser shared medalist honors at eight-under par 208 atop the 81-man field.
Sophomore Doug Fortner (Tustin, Calif./Foothill) moved up 10 spots on the final day of action, sharing 34th place at five-over par 221 (75-74-72) to log his best 54-hole score of the spring. Sophomore Carl Santos-Ocampo (Naples, Fla./Community School of Naples) and freshman Dustin Zhang (Calgary, Alberta/Bishop Carroll) tied for 48th place at eight-over par 224 — Santos-Ocampo shot rounds of 76, 74 and 74, while Zhang wavered a bit in his final round, winding up with scores of 74, 72 and 78 in his debut with the Notre Dame travel squad. Senior tri-captain Eddie Peckels (Pinehurst, N.C./Pope John Paul II (Fla.)) rounded out the Irish scoring in 71st place at 16-over par 232 (77-75-80) during his first spring tournament in the travel lineup.
Notre Dame gets back in the swing on Saturday, April 5, when it plays host to the one-day, 36-hole Irish Spring Invitational at the Warren Golf Course. Teams will tee off in the opening round via a shotgun start at 9 a.m. (ET), with continuous play throughout the day. Full results will be posted on the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.UND.com) at the conclusion of the day’s competition, as well as on the Notre Dame Sports Hotline (574-631-3000).
— ND —
National Invitational Tournament
March 23-25, 2008 • Tucson, Ariz.
Omni Tucson National Golf Club (par 72/7,330 yards)
FINAL TEAM SCORES (54-hole totals): 1. TCU 854 (275-290-269); 2. Kent State 857 (287-291-279); 3. UNLV 864 (286-290-288); 4. Arizona State 866 (290-293-283); 5. Arizona 870 (294-290-286); 6. Houston 874 (299-289-286); 7. Pepperdine 875 (291-293-291); 8. Arizona “B” 877 (298-290-289); 9. Sam Houston State 881 (299-286-296); 10. (tie) NOTRE DAME 883 (296-291-296) and Tulsa 883 (296-296-289); 12. New Mexico 884 (286-290-308); 13. Iowa 885 (299-296-290); 14. Virginia 890 (292-303-295); 15. UTEP 921 (311-305-305).
TOP SIX INDIVIDUALS PLUS NOTRE DAME GOLFERS (of 81): 1. (tie) Nicolas Geyger (TU) 208 (69-68-71), David Markle (KSU) 208 (70-71-67) and Ben Moser (UH) 208 (71-68-69); 4. Franklin Corpening (TCU) 210 (69-68-73); 5. (tie) Jesper Kennegard (ASU) 211 (70-74-67) and Andrew Putnam (PU) 211 (71-72-68); 10. (tie) Josh Sandman (ND) 214 (71-71-72); 34. (tie) Doug Fortner (ND) 221 (75-74-72); 48. (tie) Carl Santos-Ocampo (ND) 224 (76-74-74) and Dustin Zhang (ND) 224 (74-72-78); 71. Eddie Peckels (ND) 232 (77-75-80).