Golf

VUCIC SHINES, WARRIORS FINISH THIRD

VUCIC SHINES, WARRIORS FINISH THIRD
Posted: Nov 06, 2021

Odessa, IA – No. 7 Indian Hills Men's Golf finished strong at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championship Preview with a third-place finish at the Odessa Country Club. The Warriors were led by Frank Vucic's (Adelaide, Australia/Seaford Secondary College) second-place individual finish.

In the 15-team field, the Warriors battled back after a slow start to outplay some of the top teams in the nation. Indian Hills opened with a 294 in round one before totaling a 284 and 283 in the final two rounds to finish 3-under for the tournament. The Warriors' final round of 283 was tied for the second-best round of any team in the 54-hole event.

Head coach John Mulholland noted the team's resiliency down the stretch. "Really happy with the way the boys fought out the rest of the week as we got off to a bit of a rough start with some bad weather and maybe just a little bit of nerves playing in a bigger event against some of the best teams in the country. Coming down to the Lions Den is always a big challenge and we handled it. Lots of positive things coming from this and for the rest of the season, we can just continue to build on what we've done throughout the whole fall and get ready for the return to Odessa in May."

Midland College (TX) led the field with a 15-under, ahead of Odessa College's (TX) 10-under. The event featured 12 of the top-20 nationally ranked teams.

Vucic was the standout for the Warriors after improving on his score in each round. The freshman opened up with a 72 in round one before making a run to the top of the leaderboard with a 2-under 70 in round two and a 3-under 69 in the final round. Vucic posted the second-best Par 5 scoring of the event, shooting 7-under.

"Really pleased with how Frank played," Mulholland stated. "He showed a lot of class all tournament, which was noticed by a lot of NCAA DI coaches attending this week. He picked up the team with three fantastic rounds."

As a team, the Warriors placed five individuals inside the top-25 with six total rounds below par. Damian Osner (George, South Africa/Glenwood House) tied for 13th individually at 2-over after an opening round 70. Ryan Thomas (Launceston, Australia/Rowville Secondary High School) also tied for 13th and fired an impressive 4-under 68 in the second round.

Mitch Revie (Queensland, Australia/Robina State) tied for 17th in the event at 4-over and contributed to the team's strong finish with a 2-under 70 in the final round. Cole Davis (Marshalltown, IA/Marshalltown) fired a 70 in the closing round to finish tied for 25th in the 94-player field.

"We had many good rounds individually today," Mulholland added. "Cole came in with the round of 70 which really helped along with Mitch also shooting a great round of 70 also."

The Preview concludes the Warriors' fall campaign with sights set on the spring season and a shot at a national championship.

Mulholland expressed his excitement for the second portion of the team's season. "This whole team is doing great things and it's been a fun fall. We can't wait for the spring."