NEWTON, Kan. – Drew D’Ercole put together the strongest performance among Bulldogs on Sunday (April 2) as Concordia University Men’s Golf wrapped up the two-round Bethel College Spring Invitational. As a team, the Bulldogs remained in sixth place in the final standings. A 315 carded at Sand Creek Station Golf Course in Hesston, Kan., prevented Concordia from making a move upward. A day earlier, the Bulldogs shot a 295 at Hesston Municipal Golf Course in Newton, Kan.
Head Coach Brett Muller’s squad shot a cumulative two-round score of 610. That total put Concordia behind the likes of Doane (577), Midland (590), Southeast Community College (590), Doane ‘B’ (597) and Briar Cliff (599) in the team race.
“The weather conditions were absolutely perfect on Saturday and the course was set up to be scoreable with minimal wind,” Muller said. “We just didn’t play as well as we hoped. We had 16 birdies and had too many bogeys and worse. That really affected our team score. We were just too inconsistent both days, but I thought Jaxson Fullerton had a really solid tournament. We’re looking for a consistent lineup right now.”
An 81 on day two prevented Ivan Yabut from making a run at another top 10 tournament finish. D’Ercole made the biggest splash in round two and moved up 15 spots on the individual leaderboard for a final placement of tied for 19th. The Papillion, Neb., native shot 76-74–150 for the tournament. Yabut (71-81–152) wound up in a tie for 27th place on the heels of sixth-place claim at the Doane Spring Invite. The rest of the Bulldog team of five in Kansas included Justin Webert (76-80–156; T-35th), Gavin McWhorter (78-80–158; T-39th) and Jake Hagerbaumer (72-88–160; T-48th).
It was a fine couple of days for Omaha native Jaxson Fullerton, who shot a career low of one-over-par 72 on Saturday. He followed it up with a 79 on Sunday (151 two-round score) and placed in a tie for 23rd overall out of the field of 75 golfers at the Bethel Invite. Fullerton was one of three Bulldogs to compete as individuals. The other two were Jacob Woodmancy (74-80–154; 34th) and Jake Richmond (79-83–162; T-51st).
Entering the weekend, Concordia possessed an average team score of 294.1, a figure that would represent a school record. The Bethel Invite marked the team’s second outing this spring. The Bulldogs placed as the tournament runner up at the Doane Spring Invite (March 24-25).
Bulldogs at the Bethel Invite
T19. Drew D’Ercole: 76-74–150
T23. Jaxson Fullerton: 72-79–151
T27. Ivan Yabut: 71-81–152
34. Jacob Woodmancy: 74-80–154
T35. Justin Webert: 76-80–156
T39. Gavin McWhorter: 78-80–158
T48. Jake Hagerbaumer: 72-88–160
T51. Jake Richmond: 79-83–162
Next up on the official varsity slate will be the Midwest Spring National Invite hosted by Kansas Wesleyan University on April 10-11. Colbert Hills Golf Course in Manhattan, Kan., will be the location for both days of the tournament. Coming up this Wednesday, Concordia will also play at the Doane JV tournament held at Mahoney Golf Course in Lincoln, Neb.