CORDOVA, Tenn. – The 10th-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team overtook host Memphis during Tuesday's final round at Colonial Country Club to secure the team title at the Memphis Intercollegiate: Spirited by Old Dominick.
Three Illini posted top-10 finishes and all five members of the Illini lineup, plus individual competitor Jake Birdwell, finished in the top 16 of the 84-player field.
The win is the team's second of the season after closing the fall schedule with a victory at the Steelwood Collegiate in October. It marks the 93rd team tournament victory under head coach Mike Small, and gives the Illini multiple team wins in each of the last five seasons, dating back to the COVID-19 shortened campaign in 2019-20, and in 17 consecutive full seasons dating back to 2007-08.
The Illini closed with their best round of the week, carding a team score of 289 (+1) in Tuesday's finale to cap off a 54-hole tally of 878 (+14). The Orange and Blue entered the day five strokes behind Memphis, but shot 10 strokes better than the Tigers over the final 18 to close out the five-stroke victory.
Junior Ryan Voois closed as the Illini's top competitor for the third time this season, shooting a 218 (+2) to finish four strokes behind medalist Diego Lourenco of Memphis. Voois' final round tally of even-par 72 helped him move two spots up the leaderboard into a tie for third, his best finish of the season.
Sophomore Max Herendeen placed fifth, just one shot behind Voois at 219 (+3). It marks the seventh top-five finish of his collegiate career, and his third this season after finishing T4 at the Fallen Oak Invitational and fifth at the John A. Burns Intercollegiate.
Sophomore Ethan Wilson tied for 10th, his best finish in the lineup this season after also finishing T8 as an individual competitor at the John A. Burns Intercollegiate. Following an opening 77 (+5) in Round 1, Wilson improved three strokes for a 74 in Round 2, then shaved three more in Tuesday's finale to finish with a 1-under 71 for a three-round score of 222 (+6).
Freshman Trey Marrion tied for 12th with a total of 221 (+8), matching his classmate Birdwell who placed second among individual competitors behind runner-up Christian Pardue of Tennessee.
Senior Jackson Buchanan's closing 71 pushed him 15 spots up the individual leaderboard into a tie for 16th, his seventh top-20 finish in nine events this season.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Illini have a quick turnaround before traveling to Augusta, Georgia, for the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational, which tees off Saturday. The event is hosted by Augusta University at Forest Hills Golf Club – just miles from Augusta National Golf Club – and concludes Sunday, the eve of Masters week.
