OKATIE, S.C. – The 21st-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team closed out its week along the Southeast Atlantic Coast on Thursday with a 5.5-1.5 loss in its exhibition match play vs. No. 20 Texas at the Chechessee Creek Club.
The Illini and the Longhorns, who were both in action Monday and Tuesday at The Johnnie-O at Sea Island in nearby St. Simons Island, Ga., added the date to their schedules in January after each lost a day of competition at the rain-shortened OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational in September. The programs have combined for 15 NCAA Match Play appearances – eight for Illinois and seven for Texas – since the NCAA Championship's current format was adopted in 2009.
Six of the seven matches on the day were extremely tightly contested affairs that needed at least 16 holes to be decided. The exception was senior Piercen Hunt's victory, 4&3, over UT's Ben Delarosa.
Two of the matches went the distance. Junior Jackson Buchanan halved the head-to-head tilt with Christaan Haas, while Texas' Keaton Vo narrowly edged Illini fifth-year Timmy Crawford, 1up.
Fifth-year Tyler Goecke and freshman Ethan Wilson were downed 2&1 in their matchups vs. Nathan Petronzio and Jacob Sosa, respectively, while freshman Max Herendeen (vs. Tommy Morrison) and sophomore Ryan Voois (vs. Brian Stark) each fell, 3&2.
UP NEXT
The Illini will be back in action, March 25-26, in Eugene, Ore., for the Duck Invitational, hosted by the University of Oregon at Eugene Country Club.
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