Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Revved Up for NCAA East Regional
5/18/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
*Live Leaderboard
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - For the second straight year, the Indiana men's golf team is on its way to the NCAA Regionals. This year, the Hoosiers head to Nashville, Tenn., for the NCAA East Regional, Thursday-Saturday, May 19-21. The Southeastern Conference will host the event at the Golf Club of Tennessee. The Golf Club is set up as a par 71 with a yardage of 6,864.
Participating Hoosiers
The Hoosiers will send a team of five players, including seniors Jeff Overton and Heath Peters, junior Scott Seibert, sophomore Aaron Harrell and freshman Santiago Quirarte. All five golfers also were in the line up at the Big Ten Championships and have played in the last three tournaments the Hoosiers have entered.
Overton and Peters will make their 12th starts in 12 events this season, while Quirarte gets a nod in the starting rotation for the 11th straight tournament. Quirarte also played as an individual at the season-opening Radrick Farms Intercollegiate. This will be Seibert's eighth start and 10th overall event, while Harrell will appear in his fifth event and make his fifth career start.
Tournament Information
The Indiana University men's golf team heads to the NCAA East Regional, Thursday-Saturday, May 19-21, in Nashville, Tenn. The Southeastern Conference will host the event at the Golf Club of Tennessee. The Golf Club is set up as a par 71 with a yardage of 6,864.
The event consists of three rounds, 18 holes played on each of the three days. Indiana enters the Regional as the 13th seed and will be joined by 26 teams (in order by seeding), Georgia, Georgia Tech, Florida, Duke (ACC Champions), Wake Forest, Tennessee, Georgia Southern, Alabama, Clemson, Georgia State (Atlantic Sun Champions), Coastal Carolina (Big South Champions), East Tennessee State (Southern Champions), Central Florida, North Carolina, Louisville, Virginia, Vanderbilt, Charlotte, Penn State, North Carolina-Wilmington (Colonial Champions), Towson, Rhode Island, Rutgers, Maryland, Army (Patriot Champions) and Boston College.
Tournament play begins on Thursday with the Hoosiers teeing of at 12:54 p.m. from tee No. 1. IU starts at 8:51 a.m. in round two from tee No. 10 on Friday. The final round commences from the first and 10th tees beginning at 7:12 a.m on Saturday.
Tournament Results
Complete tournament results will be made available on the web at IUHOOSIERS.com following the Regional. There also will be LIVE scoring of the East Regional through www.golfstat.com. For more information, contact Jeff Keag at (812) 855-6209 or through e-mail at jkeag@indiana.edu.
Last Time Out
In four years at Indiana, Jeff Overton has shattered nearly every school record and has accomplished nearly everything a collegian could possibly accomplish. And now he can add Big Ten champion to his resume. The senior dominated the field with a record-tying 17-under-par 199 (65-65-69) en route to a four-shot victory over Michigan State's Ryan Brehm at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison, Wis., on May 6-8. Overton is the seventh Hoosier to win medalist honors at the Big Tens and the first since Shaun Micheel in 1991.
As a team, the Cream and Crimson recorded their best finish in IU head coach Mike Mayer's seven-year tenure and its best placing since winning the Championships in 1998, closing the tournament in second place. IU carded a 12-under-par 852 total (283-275-294), five strokes behind Michigan State (282-276-289). The Hoosiers bested third-place Northwestern (294-280-279) by one shot and fourth-place Minnesota (285-283-286) by a pair of shots.
After matching the course record his first two rounds, Overton came back with a 3-under-par this afternoon, tying the Big Ten 54-hole mark of 199 set by Kevin Hall of Ohio State at last season's Championships. The All-American entered the final round with a three-shot lead and saw it trimmed to one through the first eight holes. However, a 4-iron from 230 yards out to 15 feet set up an eagle opportunity at the par-5 ninth, and Overton drained the putt to boost his lead to three and end Brehm's comeback attempt.
The Evansville, Ind., native went on to shoot 2-under coming in with the help of a second eagle at the par-5 16th on his way to the eighth victory of his career.
In addition to earning the Big Ten title, Overton picked up some hardware after the event. For the second
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Breaking his previous 54-hole personal best, Scott Seibert placed in a tie for sixth place with a 4-under-par 212. The junior closed out the Championships with a 1-over 73 after rounds of 71 and 68. Seibert's finish is his second-career top 10 and his second-best showing in his career (4th at the Pinehurst Invitational - March 28-29, 2005).
Return Trip To NCAA Regionals
The Cream and Crimson is making its second straight visit to the NCAA Regionals. Last year, IU made a trip to the Central Regional in West Lafayette, Ind., tying for 20th place.
This marks the first time since the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons Indiana has made back-to-back NCAA appearances, and it is the second NCAA trip in Mayer's seven seasons.
Big Ten Champ
Playing at his final Big Ten event, Jeff Overton became the seventh Hoosier to win medalist honors at the Big Ten Championships and the first since Shaun Micheel in 1991. The senior dominated the field with a record-tying 17-under-par 199 (65-65-69) en route to a four-shot victory over Michigan State's Ryan Brehm on May 6-8 at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison, Wis.
After matching the course and tournament 36-hole records his first two rounds, Overton came back with a 3-under-par in round three, tying the Big Ten 54-hole mark of 199 set by Kevin Hall of Ohio State at last season's Championships.
Hoosiers Sparkle At Big Tens
On the heels of senior Jeff Overton's championship run, the Hoosiers recorded their best finish in Indiana head coach Mike Mayer's seven-year tenure and their best placing since winning the Big Tens in 1998, closing the Championships in second place. IU carded a 12-under-par 852 total (283-275-294), five strokes behind Michigan State (282-276-289). The Hoosiers bested third-place Northwestern (294-280-279) by one shot and fourth-place Minnesota (285-283-286) by a pair of shots.
Breaking his previous 54-hole personal best, Scott Seibert placed in a tie for sixth place with a 4-under-par 212. The junior closed out the Championships with a 1-over 73 after rounds of 71 and 68. Seibert's finish is his third career top 10 and his second-best showing in his career (4th at the Pinehurst Invitational - March 28-29, 2005).
Collecting Some Hardware
In addition to earning the conference title, senior Jeff Overton picked up some hardware after the Big Ten Championships. For the second straight year, the Palmer Cup team member was named Big Ten Player of the Year, becoming the first Hoosier since Randy Leen (1996-98) to garner the award in consecutive seasons. Overton also won the Les Bolstad Award for low season stroke average for the second time in as many years. And for the fourth straight season, Overton was named to the All-Big Ten team, claiming first team honors for the third time in his career.
Title Time For Overton
Senior Jeff Overton shot a 210 (68-67-75) and tied for first place at the Fossum/TaylorMade Invitational on April 30-May 1. The victory was the Evansville, Ind., native's seventh career title and his second of the season. Overton and Minnesota's Ben Greve both finished the event with a 6-under-par total. It was Overton's second straight victory at the Fossum.
With the victory, Overton was named Big Ten Golfer of the Week for the ninth time in his career. It was the All-American's second league recognition this season.
After his second-place finish at the Pinehurst Invitational (March 28-29), Overton was selected the Big Ten Golfer of the Week.
Although, it was the first accolade for Overton this year, he became the second Hoosier in three weeks to capture Golfer of the Week honors. Freshman Santiago Quirarte won the award on March 17 after finishing
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Hoosiers In The Rankings
Entering the East Regional, the Hoosiers are ranked in the top 50 in Golfstat's (No. 45) and Golfweek's rankings (No. 50).
Individually, senior Jeff Overton is rated No. 4 by both Golfstat and Golfweek.
Overton In The Palmer Cup
Jeff Overton was one of four golfers named to represent the United States in the 2005 Palmer Cup. The annual Ryder Cup-style competition between American collegiate golfers and their counterparts from Europe will be played June 8-9 on the Whistling Straits Irish Course in Kohler, Wis. Team USA leads the series, 4-3-1. Joining Overton is Matt Every of Florida, New Mexico's Spencer Levin and Pepperdine's Michael Putnam.
Quirarte Golfer Of The Week
Santiago Quirarte was named Big Ten Golfer of the Week following his fourth-place finish at the Pioneer Classic (March 15-16). The honor was the first of the freshman's career and the first for an IU golfer this season.
After shooting a 6-under-par 138 total with an opening-round 71 and a 67 in round two, Quirarte closed with an even-par 72 for a 210 mark. The Queretaro, Mexico, native recorded season-best 18-, 36- and 54-hole scores in the event, leading the Cream and Crimson to a third-place finish.
Quirarte was the first Indiana golfer to win the award since senior Jeff Overton captured three consecutive weekly accolades from April 20-May 5, 2004. It also was the seventh time in the last two seasons a Hoosier has earned the honor (Overton fifth times, senior Heath Peters one time and Quirarte one time).
Overton A Semifinalist
Adding to his list of growing accolades, Jeff Overton was named a semifinalist for the 2005 Ben Hogan Award. The senior All-American was one of 10 semifinalists for the prestigious award. As a junior, Overton was selected to the watch list for the Hogan Award.
The Hogan is presented annually to the top men's NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or junior college golfer taking into account all collegiate and amateur competitions during the last 12 months.
Harrell Walks Into Success
After officially joining the team as a walk-on and then winning the qualifier for the fifth spot at the Pioneer Classic (March 15-16), Aaron Harrell proved worthy of the position, placing in a tie for 40th. The sophomore carded a 220 with rounds of 73, 75 and 72.
Harrell is one of two walk-ons on the club, joining freshman Aaron Knapp. The two are the first walk-ons in head coach Mike Mayer's seven seasons at Indiana.
More Accolades For Overton
Following the conclusion of the fall portion of IU's schedule, senior Jeff Overton has continued to play in prestigious events and receive numerous accolades. Below is a look at what he has done since the fall season:
*He was named honorable mention for October's National Amateur of the Month by the Southern Golf Association. The senior All-American candidate also was named honorable mention in 2003 for the month of
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*For the second straight season, Overton ascended to the top spot in Golfstat's collegiate golf rankings.
*Overton tied for 12th place at the 30th Annual Western Refining College All-America Golf Classic (Nov. 22-23), finishing with a three-round, 1-over-par 214 (72-67-75) total.
*He concluded his winter break with a come-from-behind victory at the New Year's Invitational at St. Petersburg Country Club on Jan. 6-9. The senior shot a four-round 275 total (69-68-71-67) to overtake Adam Scrimenti by one shot.
*Overton was named to the watch list for the 2005 Ben Hogan Award presented annually to the top men's NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or junior college golfer.
*He finished tied for seventh at the prestigious Jones Cup Invitational, a preview of this
summer's Walker Cup, on Feb. 18-20, at Ocean Forest Golf Club.
Record-Breaking Event
The Xavier Invitational has been very good to the Hoosiers the past two years. At this year's event (Oct. 11-12), senior Jeff Overton fired an 11-under-par 61 in the final round, earning medalist honors, and leading the IU men's golf team to its first victory of the season.
Overton's round (11 birdies, one eagle) is the second-lowest round in NCAA history behind three golfers who have shot 60, including PGA Tour members Paul Casey and Bryce Molder, and former Washington standout Brock Mackenzie.
With the round, Overton carded a new 54-hole IU record at 24-under-par 192, following rounds of 65 and 66 on day one. He shattered his old mark of 199 set at the 2003 49er Collegiate Classic. The Evansville, Ind., native now has six career titles after winning five tournaments last year.
Senior Heath Peters finished in second place with a 13-under-par 203, the fourth-lowest total in the program's history and a new personal best for the Garrett, Ind., product. Peters' second-place finish was the first of his career and his second-best career finish. He now has 15 career top 10s after his first top 10 this season.
Overton and Peters not only led the Hoosiers to their first title this season, but also their second consecutive championship at the Xavier Invitational. IU closed the event with a new school record of 30-under-par 834 (281-274-279), good for a 21-shot advantage over Saint Mary's (Calif.) and Wisconsin. Indiana won back-to-back tournaments at the same event for the first time since winning consecutive Big Ten Championships in 1974 and '75.
