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Augustana College Athletics

2011-12 Men's Golf Review

Jake Groselak named MVP in coach Paul Del Vecchio’s first season; Jeffrey Paustian records team’s top CCIW finish
 
The 2011-12 men’s golf season, head coach Paul Del Vecchio’s first at Augustana, was highlighted by the performance of freshman Jake Groselak (Lemont HS, Lemont, Ill.), who sported the Vikings’ best per-round average at 81.5 strokes, as well as the team’s top finish with a fifth-place 78 at the Vike-Fire-Scot Triangular. Another freshman, Grant Murphy (Dunlap HS, Peoria, Ill.), was named Newcomer of the Year and sophomore John Stone (Rockridge HS, Reynolds, Ill.) was named Most Improved.
 
The Vikings competed in 12 events in Del Vecchio’s first season, posting a 37-88-2 head-to-head record. Their top performance was a sixth-place finish at the 13-team Prairie Fire Classic hosted by Knox College in Peoria, Illinois on March 30-31, 2012. The team’s highest finish was second place at the Vike-Fire-Scot Triangular in Monmouth, Illinois on September 22, 2011.
 
Murphy finished just behind Groselak with an average of 82.2 strokes per round and had the best single round of the season with an opening-round 73 at the Blueboy Invitational in Jacksonville, Illinois on April 21-22, 2012. He and Groselak were the only individuals to compete in all 12 events and 23 rounds this season.
 
Other mainstays for De Vecchio included junior Jeffrey Paustian (Geneva HS, Geneva, Ill.), who was third on the team with an average of 83.1 strokes per round over 19 rounds in 10 events. His low round was a 74 at the Augustana Invitational and his highest finish was a tie for 18th at the Vike-Fire-Scot Triangular. He also had Augustana’s top finish at the CCIW tournament with a four-round total of 321, tying for 25th.
 
Junior Curtis Lubic (Kaneland HS, Sugar Grove, Ill.) averaged 83.3 strokes over 20 rounds in 10 events. He had a low round of 77 at the Duane Chaney Invitational and a top finish of 14th at the Elmhurst Invitational.
 
Freshman Max Channon (Wheaton Warrenville South HS, Wheaton, Illinois) played 17 rounds in nine events with an average of 84.4 strokes. His low round of 75 at the Blueboy Invitational helped him to a 10th-place finish, the second-highest by a Viking this year.
 
Josh Kukla (Zion-Benton HS, Winthrop Harbor, Ill.), another freshman, averaged 88.4 strokes over 19 rounds in 10 events. His highest finish was 14th at the Duane Chaney Invitational, where he shot a season-low round of 74. That tied him for the second-best round by a Viking this year.
 
2012 COLLEGE CONFERENCE OF ILLINOIS & WISCONSIN TOURNAMENT
April 27-18, 2012 ** Oakwood Country Club ** Coal Valley, Illinois (Rounds 1 & 2)
May 4-5, 2012 ** Meadowbrook Country Club ** Kenosha, Wisconsin (Rounds 3 & 4)
 
Rank  Team Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4  Total  Par
1  Illinois Wesleyan 308 292 301 289 1190 54
2  Carthage 305 300 304 295 1204 68
3  Millikin 306 302 311 296 1215 79
4  Wheaton 309 310 304 301 1224 88
5  North Park 322 317 311 308 1258 122
6  North Central 318 324 326 324 1292 156
7  Elmhurst 336 322 328 317 1303 167
8  AUGUSTANA 339 316 333 320 1308 172
 
Rank  Player  Team Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4  Total  Par
1  Hillen, Wes  Millikin 69 71 69 72 281 -3
2  Hyland, Brad  Carthage 76 75 72 68 291 7
3  Johnson, Stefan  Illinois Wesleyan 77 71 73 71 292 8
4  Reese, Dex  Illinois Wesleyan 77 72 76 72 297 13
5  Smith, Shane  Illinois Wesleyan 77 73 76 74 300 16
6  Langland, Donnie  Carthage 74 74 77 77 302 18
7  Kopka, Josh  Carthage 80 76 76 73 305 21
8  Downey, Dan  Wheaton 79 76 75 76 306 22
9  Cardle, Tommy  Wheaton 75 80 79 73 307 23
10  Markiewicz, Mike  Millikin 82 75 79 72 308 24
10  Moore, Steven  Wheaton 81 74 77 76 308 24
10  Nordin, Tobias  North Park 80 78 74 76 308 24
25  Paustian, Jeffrey  AUGUSTANA 87 79 79 76 321 37
30  Groselak, Jake  AUGUSTANA 79 81 84 84 328 44
30  Murphy, Grant  AUGUSTANA 87 81 84 76 328 44
38  Lubic, Curtis  AUGUSTANA 88 78 86 84 336 52
43  Channon, Max  AUGUSTANA 89 78 91 86 344 60
43  Kukla, Josh  AUGUSTANA 86 83 89 86 344 60
 
2011-12 AUGUSTANA SUPERLATIVES
MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER – Jake Groselak 
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER – John Stone
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR – Grant Murphy

INDIVIDUAL TOP TEN FINISHERS IN INVITATIONALS
T-10th, Max Channon (80-75—155) – Blueboy Invitational, 04/21-22/12 
T-5th, Jake Groselak (78) – Vike-Fire-Scot Triangular, 09/22/11