Michigan
Northern Intercollegiate
Spring Third, Men's Golf Ties for Seventh at Northern Intercollegiate
9/16/2018 5:57:00 PM | Men's Golf
» With a final 291 team tally, Michigan tied for seventh place with a 54-hole total of 888 in the season-opening Northern Intercollegiate.
» Henry Spring led the Wolverines as he posted a career-best third-place individual finish with a 215 (71-73-71, -1) total -- just a shot off his career-low.
» Charlie Pilon rallied to earn a top 20 finish as he tied for 16th at 220 (80-71-69).
» Freshmen Patrick Sullivan (T65th) and Ben Dunne (86th) made their collegiate debuts and recorded their first career starts.
Site: Sugar Grove, Ill.
Course: Rich Harvest Farms (Par 72, 7,281 yards)
Tournament: Northern Intercollegiate
U-M Team Standing: Tie-7th Place of 14 Teams (307-290-291/888)
Top U-M Individual: Henry Spring, 3rd (71-73-71/215, -1)
Next U-M Event: Sun-Mon., Sept. 23-24 -- Windon Memorial Classic (Lake Forest, Ill.)
SUGAR GROVE, Ill. -- Led by sophomore Henry Spring's career-best third-place individual finish, the University of Michigan men's golf team opened its 2018-19 campaign tied for seventh with an 888 total Sunday (Sept. 16) at Northern Illinois' Northern Intercollegiate, held at the prestigious Rich Harvest Farms Golf Course.
Despite first round 71s (-1) from Spring and senior Nick Carlson, U-M's back end got off to a slow start as the Maize and Blue posted a 307 team total and positioned itself 13th in the 14-team field. Heading back out for the day's second 18 holes, the Wolverines started a rally and found themselves in a battle with the setting sun.
Moving up six positions before play was called, the Wolverines had to complete their rally Sunday morning. U-M used a second straight 71 (-1) from Carlson, combined with a 71 (-1) from sophomore Charlie Pilon -- after he bounced back from an opening 80 -- and a 73 from Spring to drop 17 shots and total a 290 and moved into eighth place.
Sticking with the original pairings, Pilon continued his strong play with five birdies to help post a season-low 69 (-3), while Spring followed with four birdies and an eagle chip-in on the 18th hole to fire 71 (-1). Adding in freshman Patrick Sullivan's 72 (E), the Wolverines closed with a 291 total to move up a spot and tie for seventh place.
"I was happy to see the guys show some grit and come back after a very poor opening round," said U-M head coach Chris Whitten. "Had we played the same type of golf that we did in the last two rounds, we could have been in contention, so we will use that momentum for sure. I know each of these guys will be eager to clean up a few things at home during the week and get right back into competition next weekend at Northwestern."
After closing his freshman season with a career-best 214 tally at the 2018 Big Ten Championships (April 27-29), Spring (71-73-71) carried that momentum into the season opener to lead U-M with a near career-best performance, finishing third with a 215 (-1) -- just a shot off his career-best total.
"I played solid for the duration of the tournament and gave myself plenty of chances to make birdie," said Spring. "It was an exciting finish today, knowing I was only five back with nine to go. After I holed a couple of nice chip shots it gave me a sniff of the lead, so that gave me confidence. I'm stoked for this start. It boasts for an exciting season."
"Henry was really steady this week and showed a lot of maturity on the course," said Whitten. "His game is really looking good and expect him to keep this up for a long time."
After his opening 80, Pilon battled his way back to crack the top 20 as he tied for 16th with a 220 (81-71-69) total. Following his strong start, Carlson tied for 23rd at 221 (71-71-79) to help U-M have three among the top 25. In his collegiate debut, and first career start, Sullivan rallied from a first-round 85 with rounds of 75 and 72 to tie for 65th (232).
The Wolverines will waste little time returning to tournament action when they head back to Chicago for Northwestern's Windon Memorial Classic, Sunday and Monday (Sept. 23-24) at the Knollwood Club in Lake Forest, Illinois. After a year away from the Wildcats' home fall event, U-M returns for an 11th time.
Final Team Standings
 1. Marquette          281-300-293 = 874 (+10)  2. Notre Dame         299-292-284 = 875  3. Missouri           283-299-297 = 879  4. Ohio State         299-292-290 = 881  5. Coastal Carolina   305-291-290 = 886    UMKC               299-301-286 = 886  7. Northern Illinois  305-291-292 = 888    MICHIGAN           307-290-291 = 888  9. Grand Canyon       295-303-293 = 891 10. Miami (Ohio)       305-298-289 = 892 11. Wisconsin          294-301-300 = 895    Augusta            291-315-289 = 895 13. Toledo             304-314-301 = 919 14. Aurora             322-321-315 = 958
Top Individuals
 1. Hunter Ostrom, Notre Dame      73-69-68 = 210* (-6)  2. Zack Taylor, Coastal Carolina  74-68-72 = 214  3. HENRY SPRING, U-M              71-73-71 = 215  4. Davis Chatfield, Notre Dame    73-75-68 = 216    Charlie Nikitas, Miami (Ohio)  71-74-71 = 216    McCain Schellhardt, UMKC       73-70-73 = 216    Matt Murlick, Marquette        71-72-73 = 216    Will Grimmer, Ohio State       74-71-71 = 216    Harrison Mahon, UCLA           74-72-70 = 216* 10. Daniel Wetterich, Ohio State   70-75-72 = 217
Other Michigan Individuals
T16. Charlie Pilon     80-71-69 = 220 T23. Nick Carlson      71-71-79 = 221 T65. Patrick Sullivan  85-75-72 = 232  86. Ben Dunne         85-76-82 = 243 T50. Brent Ito         74-75-80 = 229* * playing as individual
Players Mentioned
