The Miami University men's golf team finished its fall season Tuesday in Beallsville, Md. and the RedHawks continued to improve, just as they have all season.
The RedHawks finished in fourth place at the Georgetown Intercollegiate and were led by sophomore Jack Sparling, who finished tied for 12th and shot four over par. Sparling shot a 68 (-3) in the third round.
"I think the conditions were easier in the third round; there was less wind," Sparling said. "I was also more familiar with course [after playing two rounds Monday], I had never golfed at Georgetown before this tournament."
Sparling said he is satisfied with his performance this fall. He finished as the top individual RedHawk in three of the four tournaments he participated in this fall.
"I think I had a pretty good fall, I did a lot better than last year," Sparling said. "I'm hoping to improve even more in the spring."
Rounding out the RedHawk lineup were juniors Scott Cahill (20th place), Luke Shaughnessy (t-21st), and seniors Austin Kelly (t-24th) and Mark MacDonald (t-43rd).
The RedHawks placed four golfers in the top 25 individuals and all five golfers in the top 45 individuals, both season firsts for the RedHawks.
"It's a testament to the effort of the guys," Head coach Zac Zedrick said. "They have all worked diligently this fall."
The RedHawks were tied for fifth place after the first round, and slipped to tie for ninth place after two rounds, before improving 20 strokes as a team in the final round of not only tournament, but also the fall.
"I'm really proud of how we bounced back," Zedrick said. "Everyone was disappointed with how day one went. You always want to win tournaments, especially the last one of the fall, and when you know it is out of reach, things can go bad, but our guys ended the fall on a good note."
Cahill said the 'Hawks played well this fall, but at the same time showed they can be even better in the spring.
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"Overall I think that we're satisfied [with the fall]," Cahill said. "We showed that we have the features [needed to win] and we played well in key rounds this fall."
Zedrick said that although the RedHawks can end the fall with a good feeling, there is still work to be done in order to compete for a Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship.
"I'm satisfied that we have gotten better with each tournament this fall," Zedrick said. "To get to the level we want to get to we have a long ways to go."
Cahill said that a competitive nature that is always present will help the RedHawks improve in the spring.
"We need to keep things competitive at home during practice so there is no transition when we go on the road," Cahill said. "If we stay competitive we can go into our practice round and be ready to play."
The RedHawks will not have another tournament until Feb., when they begin MAC play.
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