Des Moines, Iowa -- Indian Hills made up an opening-round deficit and pulled away over the final 18 holes on Tuesday to seize the team title in the Zach Johnson Invitational at the Glen Oaks Country Club. IHCC freshman George Clarke led the winning Warriors by taking individual medalist honors. The Warriors put all six of their golfers in the top 17 places.
Clarke ended the tourney with a blistering bogey-free 4-under par 67 to defeat Drake's Drew Ison by two shots. Clarke's impressive closing round was the best 18-hole score in the tournament. He had plenty of IHCC company on the leaderboard. Julien Sale tied for 7th, matching teammate Chris Cooksley, who was playing as an individual; Ricky Sanders and Joe Kim were 10th and 11th, respectively; and Maxime Leclerc finished in a six-way tie for 12th place.
Cooksley's effort included an even-par 71 in the first round and Sale, Sanders, Kim and Leclerc all had one round of 1-over par 72.
"George Clarke is turning into not only one of the best players on the team, but one of the best players in the NJCAA," said IHCC coach Nathan Weant. "Chris Cooksley posting a top-10 in his first college meet was huge. He's a very talented young player and I think will really have an impact on this team's success moving forward. And Ricky and Julien continued their solid play. Neither of them had their best stuff in this tournament, but the fact they still finished in the top 10 is a testament to how good they are."
Indian Hills trailed eventual runnerup South Dakota by five strokes after round one, and got to within a single shot of the Coyotes after Monday's second round, the middle round of the tourney. The Warriors then posted a score of 288 -- the best team score of the tourney -- to complete the comeback in Tuesday's 18 holes. They finished at 875, five shots ahead of USD.
Weant called it a "statement win" for the Indian Hills program, one, he said, they "will look back on throughout the year."
The Warriors had a very consistent showing, playing the par-4 holes in +5 and the par-5s in -5, both of those totals the best of any team.
"We had a solid tournament and fought some very tough conditions," the IHCC coach said, noting the winds were 15-25 mph every round. "The guys had to be smart and patient, and they were."
There were 11 schools that competed in the invite and Indian Hills was the lone two-year college in the field.
Indian Hills now has captured the team title in both of its meets this fall. The Warriors won the Klocke Family Classic in Marion last month. IHCC, ranked No. 1 in the latest Bushnell Golfweek NJCAA Division I Coaches Poll, will take part in the Iowa Western Fall Invite at the Bent Tree course in Council Bluffs Oct. 8-9. Then, the Warriors close out the fall campaign at the NJCAA National Preview in Lubbock, Texas Oct. 15-17.
Zach Johnson Invitational
Team scores:
- Indian Hills 296-291-288=875; 2. South Dakota 291-295-294=880; 3. Drake 295-298-297=890; 4. North Dakota State 300-296-296=892; 5. Omaha 301-303-292=896; 6. Northern Iowa 304-302-298=904; 7. Western Illinois 295-317-307=919; 8. Loyola-Chicago 309-302-318=949; 9. Green Bay 314-317-324=955; 10. Eastern Illinois 322-312-324=958; 11. North Dakota 331-327-322=980
Indian Hills scores:
1. George Clarke 74-73-67=214; T7. Julien Sale 74-72-75=221; T7. Chris Cooksley 71-73-77=221; 10. Ricky Sanders 76-74-72=222; 11. Joe Kim 77-72-74=223; T12. Maxime Leclerc 72-77-75=224