Garden City, Kansas -- Indian Hills was unable to hold off Dodge City CC over the final 18 holes and the Warriors had to settle for a runnerup finish in the NJCAA Fall National Preview that concluded on Tuesday. Leading by four strokes after the initial round Monday and by a single shot following that day's second 18 holes, the Warriors were outscored by the Conqs, 291-194, over the final round and their 869 total was two higher than Dodge City's.
IHCC had three of the top eight scores for the tourney. Jackson Bugdalski and Eric Gilpin tied for third place with 217 totals that included a three-under 69 in round 2 for Bugdalski and a one-under 71 and even-par 72 in the first and third rounds for Gilpin. Jakub Bares wound up in a four-way tie for fifth. Like his teammate Gilpin, he had scores of 71 and 72 over the 54-hole event.
Indian Hills coach Rob Murray said his squad struggled to get momentum going as a team the final day. "Sometimes as a coach, no matter what you try, you get that feeling that it's just not your day," is the way Murray summed things up.
The Preview was a two-team race between IHCC and Dodge City with Odessa College 22 shots in back of the Warriors in third place. Indian Hills had defeated Dodge City by a 20-stroke margin on Saturday in Dodge City's own invitational.
Witchayapat Sinsrang of Dodge City helped the Conqs to the first-place finish with a medalist score of 211, five shots better than Tae Itthiratchai of Western Texas College.
It was the fifth and final meet of the fall campaign for the Warriors who won two events and came in second in the other three. They have finished third or better in the past seven Previews, played on the same course where the next spring's national tourney will be contested.
NJCAA Fall National Preview
Team scores (top 10):
1. Dodge City 289-287-291=867; 2. Indian Hills 285-290-294=869; 3. Odessa 302-299-290=891; 4. Hutchinson 305-292-296=893; 5. Midland 300-299-296=895; 6. Iowa Western 307-301-299=907; 7. Western Texas 311-303-299=913; 8. Eastern Arizona 307-312-304=923; 9. McLennan 311-311-302=924; 10. New Mexico JC 305-309-312=926
Indian Hills scores:
T3. Jackson Bugdalski 75-69-73=217; T3. Eric Gilpin 71-74-72=217; T5. Jakub Bares 71-72-75=218; T11. Ricky Sanders 71-75-74=220; T15. Ekkarat Leksuwan 77-72-72=221; T32 Jack Duguid 72-77-80=229