March 8, 2011

ONEONTA, Ala. - In the rain-shortened 2011 Samford Invitational held this week at the Limestone Springs Golf Club, the Samford University men's golf team tallied a seventh-place finish at the 18-team competition. The Bulldogs carded a second-round total of 293 on Tuesday to jump seven positions into seventh place.

The second round of play in the Samford Invitational was completed early Tuesday morning before the 18-team field began the third-and-final round of competition. The teams were approximately 13 holes through the final 18 holes of play when a massive lightning storm caused the stoppage of play. Therefore, the third round was canceled and only the first two rounds of competition were counted.

Samford, the host school of the two-day event, earned a seventh-place finish with a total team score of 599 (306-293). After a slow start to the tournament Monday, the Bulldogs improved 13 strokes in the second round and jumped seven positions en route to their final seventh-place finish.

Sophomore Gabe Hyde posted Samford's best score Tuesday with a second-round mark of 71. The Bulldogs' native of Hoover finished the tournament with a 36-hole total of 150, which was good enough for a tie for 32nd place along with teammate Casey O'Toole.

O'Toole, Samford's sophomore native of Oneonta, carded a second-round score of 77 on Tuesday and finished the tournament with a total mark of 150.

The Bulldogs were led in the tournament by senior Martin Bunt. Bunt, a native of Pensacola, Fla., turned in a score of 72 Tuesday to go along with his 3-over-par mark of 75 on Monday for a team-best total of 147. Bunt's finish was good enough to finish tied for 13th place in the individual standings.

Rounding out the scoring for Samford were sophomores Bill Nabors and Drew Aimone. Nabors tallied a two-day total of 153 (79-74), while Aimone finished with a 36-hole mark of 155 (79-76).

Central Arkansas cruised to the team championship of the 2011 Samford Invitational with a two-round score of 562 (274-288). After a sizzling first-round score of 274, the Bears held on for a 26-stroke victory over second-place Illinois State. Illinois State earned its second-place finish with a two-day score of 588 (295-293).

Winthrop finished third at the 2011 Samford Invitational with a 36-hole mark of 591 (299-292).

Individually, Central Arkansas' Steven Lecuyer and Alabama's Hunter Slatton tied for the championship title of the event. Both players posted identical scores of 8-under-par 136.

The Samford University men's golf team will next be in action March 19-20 as the Bulldogs continue play in their spring season at the 2011 Furman Intercollegiate to be held at the Furman Golf Course in Greenville, S.C.

Complete Results - 2011 Samford Invitational