Wednesday, April 20, 2011

BRASELTON, Ga. - Kennesaw State ended all three rounds of the 2011 Atlantic Sun Men’s Golf Championship with the lead and on Wednesday afternoon earned its first championship school history winning by nine shots. The Owls’ Jeff Karlsson fired a three-day total of six-under-par, 207, to earn the individual medalist honor.

The Owls posted a 54-hole score of (280-283-282/845, -7) to finish as the only team under-par besting second place UNF (854, +2) by nine-strokes. Campbell concluded just one-stroke behind UNF carding a (855, +3). Kennesaw State’s 845 total tied the conference’s all-time scoring record. UCF, in 2004, and Jacksonville, in 2006, matched the Owls three-day total.

Beyond Karlsson, the individual race ended with a tight finish as a quartet of individuals tied for second including Karlssons' teammate Matt Nagy, Matt Moot of Campbell, Kevin Phelan of UNF and Hans Reimers of Mercer. These five made up the All-Tournament team. Karlsson’s win gives the junior his third individual title of the season.

Mercer finished in fourth place (860, +8) just ahead of 2010 A-Sun Champions ETSU (861, +9). The Bears matched the lowest third-round score in A-Sun history with a 7-under-par 277, tying the score shot by Jacksonville en route to the 2006 crown. All four scoring members of the Bears broke par led by Mookie DeMoss’ 3-under 68. Reimers shot a 2-under 69 while Josh Cone and Matt Kocolowski shot matching 1-under 70s.

Defending champion ETSU improved for the second-straight round, shooting a 2-under 282 to take fifth. The Buccaneers’ Patrick Spraggs shot the low round of the day, a 4-under 67 to jump into a tie for 10th. FGCU and USC Upstate shared sixth, with Belmont Jacksonville, Stetson and Lipscomb rounding out the field.

KSU makes the fourth different champion in as many years as UNF, Campbell and ETSU have claimed the three previous titles.

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts five of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.