St. George, Utah - The Youngstown State men's golf team finished tied for 10th on Tuesday in the Pizza Hut-Pat Hicks Thunderbird Invitational at Sunbrook Golf Club.
The Penguins recorded a two-round team score of 611 in their spring season opener. After posting a 319 during Monday's first round, YSU bounced back nicely with a 292 in the final session. The team's second-round 292 was tied for the third-best round by any squad on Tuesday.
Four different Penguins improved their scores by at least seven strokes from round one to round two.
Ken Keller led the Penguins as he tied for 30th with a two-round total of 149 (78-71) while Kevin Scherr tied for 46th with a 152 (80-72). Playing as an individual, Zack Ford also fired a two-round 152 (75-77) to tie for 46th.
C.J. Hughes (78-77) and Bryan Kordupel (83-72) each carded a 155 to tie for 59th while Cole Christman was 81st with a 162 (85-77). Justin Stark tied for 73rd as an individual with a two-round mark of 159 (83-76).
Utah State took home the tournament title with a two-round total of 573 (287-286). The Aggies won by three strokes over the host Southern Utah while Seattle placed third with a 582. Defending champion Northern Colorado finished fourth with a score of 583, and Weber State rounded out the top five with a 586.
Competing as an individual, Utah's Colton Tanner won medalist honors with a two-round 138 (69-69). Tanner finished one stroke better than Southern Utah's Ethan Gray (73-66) and Northern Colorado's Coby Welch (70-69). Gray's six-under-par 66 on Tuesday was the lowest single-round score of the event.
Youngstown State will have nearly a month off before its next event. The Penguins will return to action March 9-10 for the George Mason Orlando Invitational at Mission Inn Resort & Club in Howey-In-The-Hills, Fla.
For news and updates throughout the spring season, follow @YSUMensGolf on Twitter.
