Youngstown State University
World Golf Village Collegiate hosted by Eastern Kentucky
Men’s Golf Begins Spring Season Monday at World Golf Village Collegiate
2/17/2024 10:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
The Youngstown State men's golf team will open the spring portion of its 2023-24 season on Monday when it begins play in the two-day World Golf Village Collegiate hosted by Eastern Kentucky at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla.
The Penguins will return to competition for the first time since concluding their fall season at the Bucknell Invitational on Oct. 10th. YSU competed in five tournaments from early September to mid-October during its fall slate. The Guins earned a season-best fifth-place finish in their fall finale at the Bucknell Invitational.
Senior transfer Justin Atkinson paced the Penguins during the fall season with three top-10 finishes and a team-best 72.5 strokes-per-round average. Atkinson's best finish of the fall came when he tied for sixth at the Bucknell Invitational with a three-round score of 211 (73-70-68). The Brookfield, Ohio, native also posted a pair of three-round totals this past fall which rank among the top-10 performances in program history.
Atkinson tied for eighth at the Tom Tontimonia Invitational with a three-round score of 208 (69-70-69). The performance is tied for the third-lowest 54-hole score in program history. Atkinson also finished tied for 10th at the Joe Feaganes Marshall Invitational with a three-round 209 (70-68-71). That performance is tied for the seventh-lowest 54-hole score in school history.
The depth of YSU's roster was on display during the fall season as eight of the team's 12 players played in at least one event. Atkinson and Dean Austalosh competed in all five events during the fall while Ryan Sam and Jacob Sylak each participated in four tournaments. Cole Christman and Michael Porter each competed in three events, Jake Ryan participated in two tournaments and Jimmy Graham saw action in one event.
The tournament field at the World Golf Village Collegiate will feature 17 other schools including Austin Peay, Bellarmine, Belmont, Eastern Kentucky, Florida A&M, IUPUI, Jacksonville State, Lindenwood, Morehead State, Northern Kentucky, North Carolina A&T, Oakland, Purdue Fort Wayne, South Dakota, Southern Indiana, Stetson and UT Martin.
The schools will play 36 holes on Monday and 18 holes on Tuesday in the two-day, 54-hole event at the World Golf Village's King & Bear Golf Course. Play is scheduled to begin with a shotgun start at 8 a.m. each day. The course will play approximately 7,074 yards and par is 72. Live scoring will be available at Golfstat.com.
Head Coach Tony Joy has announced that YSU's lineup will feature Atkinson, Christman, Austalosh, Sam and Sylak. In addition, Porter will be competing as an individual.
For news and updates throughout the spring season, follow @YSUMensGolf on X and Instagram.
