Freshmen continue streak, three straight Eagle Cups

(MERIDIAN) – Clear skies and windy conditions greeted the competitors on Wednesday, the final day of Eagle Cup X, played at historic Northwood Country Club. The Freshmen team came into the final day clinging to a 2 point lead (4-2) over the Sophomores.

Six points were up for grabs on the final day as the format turned to singles match play, with the Freshmen team needing just 2 ½ points to secure the Cup and the Sophomore team needing a 1999- USA Ryder Cup – style comeback as they had to earn 4 ½ points on Wednesday to take back the Cup for the first time since 2009.

Match #1 featured some of the big guns as Freshman team captain Jake Stirling took on Sophomore team captain Clemens Dvorak. Stirling took a 1 UP lead heading into the back nine, then on the 15th hole made one of the longest puts in Eagle Cup history. Stirling, on the back fringe in two, drained a putt over 50 feet down the slope on the treacherous 15th green to virtually secure the match, going 3 UP with three to play. Stirling would defeat Dvorak 4&2. With the Freshmen win in Match #1 they were only 1 ½ points away from winning three straight Eagle Cups.

Match #2 featured reigning NJCAA National Champion, Brandt Garon of the sophomore team against, hometown hero Easton Key of the freshmen team. Billed as one of the title bout matches of the day, these two heavyweights went 16 holes as Key held the lead for most of the round over the veteran Garon. Key would prevail on #16 and won a “key” point for the Freshman team with a 3&2 victory over Garon. The Eagle Cup then stood at 6-2, ensuring the Freshmen at least a playoff and just ½ a point away from the Cup. Meanwhile the Sophomores had to run the table on every match remaining on the course just to force a playoff.

Match #4 pitted freshman golfer Alex Grannon against Texas sophomore Adam Monsen. The match was all square heading into the back nine, but then Monsen turned it on and dominated on the final stretch to win the match with a 5&4 victory over Grannon earning the Sophomore team a much needed point and kept their hopes alive for a playoff.

After Monsen’s win, that left three matches on the course. The Sophomores needed to win all three outright to force a playoff while the Freshmen needed to just half one of the three to claim the Cup.

Match #4 featured “freshman” John Rea against sophomore Bo Reed. Reed fell behind early to the Northwood Club Champion, and Rea made it official with an emphatic 5&4 win to give the Freshmen the Eagle Cup for the third consecutive time as they now had the lead 7-3.

Match #5 featured “freshman” Clinton Hales against sophomore Oscar Mariscal. As was the case today, this match ended early with Hales defeating Mariscal, 5&4. Making it 8-3, Freshmen.

There was only one match left on the golf course, Match #6, Randy Warden representing the Sophomores and Josh Ellis representing the Freshmen. Warden enjoyed a comfortable 4 UP lead heading into #13, Ellis won the hole to make it 3 UP, Warden leading. Then in a sign of sportsmanship, instead of continuing the match, freshman Ellis conceded the final point of the day to Warden & the Sophomores. The Cup was already out of reach for them, and the concession gave the Sophomore team the final point of Eagle Cup X, which was just their second point of the day.

Eagle Cup X ended with the Freshmen 8 and the Sophomores 4 . Eagle Cup XI will be played this Fall (2011) in Meridian with the “Freshmen” riding a winning streak of their own… three straight.



EAGLE CUP X
Freshmen 8
Sophomores 4

Day One (Four-Ball Match play)
Match 1- Brandt Garon/Adam Monsen defeated Easton Key/Clinton Hales 1 UP
Match 2- Alex Grannon/John Rea defeated Clemens Dvorak/Oscar Mariscal 2&1
Match 3- Jake Stirling/Josh Ellis defeated Bo Reed/Randy Warden 3&2

Day Two (Alternate shot match play)
Match 1- Easton Key/Alex Grannon defeated Brandt Garon/Bo Reed 3&2
Match 2- Adam Monsen/Oscar Mariscal defeated John Rea/Clinton Hales 1 UP
Match 3- Jake Stirling/Josh Ellis defeated Clemens Dvorak/Kyle Temple 3&2

Day Three (Singles match play)
Match 1- Jake Stirling defeated Clemens Dvorak 4&2
Match 2- Easton Key defeated Brandt Garon 4&2
Match 3- Adam Monsen defeated Alex Grannon 5&4
Match 4- John Rea defeated Bo Reed 5&4
Match 5- Clinton Hales defeated Oscar Mariscal 5&4
Match 6- Randy Warden defeated Josh Ellis 3 UP

History:
Cup Date Winner
I Fall 2006: Sophomores
II Spring 2007: Sophomores
III Fall 2007: Sophomores
IV Spring 2008: Sophomores
V Fall 2008: Sophomores
VI Spring 2009: Sophomores
VII Fall 2009: Sophomores
VIII Spring 2010: Freshmen
IX Fall 2010: Freshmen
X Spring 2011: Freshmen
XI Fall 2011: ???