Hoosiers Eye Big Ten Title

5/4/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf

*Big Ten Championship Notes
*Live Leaderboard

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - After a fifth-place finish at last year's Big Ten Championships, its best finish since 1998, the Indiana men's golf team heads to Madison, Wis., for the 2005 edition of the Big Tens, Friday-Sunday, May 6-8. The University of Wisconsin will host the event at University Ridge Golf Course. University Ridge is set up as a par 72 with a yardage of 6,888.

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 Boilermaker Invitational and the Fossum/TaylorMade Invitational; the last two tournaments IU has played in.

Overton and Peters will make their 11th starts in 11 events this season, while Quirarte gets a nod in the starting rotation for the 10th straight tournament. Quirarte also played as an individual at the season-opening Radrick Farms Intercollegiate. This will be Seibert's seventh start and ninth overall event, while Harrell will appear in his fourth event and make his fourth career start.

Tournament Information
The Indiana University men's golf team heads to the Big Ten Championships, Friday-Sunday, May 6-8, in Madison, Wis. The University of Wisconsin will host the event at University Ridge Golf Course. University Ridge is set up as a par 72 with a yardage of 6,888.

The event consists of three rounds, 18 holes played on each of the three days. Indiana enters the Championships as the fourth seed and will be joined by (in order by seeding), Michigan State, Minnesota, Purdue, Northwestern, Illinois, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan and Iowa.

Tournament play begins Friday with a shotgun first-round (18) start at 1 p.m. The second round (18) opens from holes 1 and 10 on Saturday at 8 a.m. On Sunday, the final round commences with tee times at 8 a.m., once again off No.'s 1 and 10.

Tournament Results

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Complete tournament results will be made available on the web at IUHOOSIERS.com following the event. There also will be LIVE scoring of the Championships through www.bigten.org and www.golfstat.com. For more information, contact Jeff Keag at (812) 855-6209 or through e-mail at jkeag@indiana.edu.

Last Time Out
Jeff Overton earned his seventh career individual title and his second this season at the Fossum/TaylorMade Invitational hosted by Michigan State on April 30-May 1, finishing in a tie with Ben Greve of Minnesota. The senior concluded the tournament at 210 (68-67-75), while Greve (70-74-66) stormed back with a 6-under 66 to clinch a share of first place. Overton also claimed the championship at the 2004 Fossum, joining Randy Leen (1997) as the only Hoosiers to win the event.

As a team, the reigning Fossum/TaylorMade champions finished in sixth place at the 15-team event. The Hoosiers carded a final-round 298 en route to an 881 finish (290-293-298).

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 fourth at the Pioneer Classic on March 15-16.

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Hoosiers In The Rankings
Entering the Big Ten Championships, the Hoosiers are ranked in the top 50 in Golfstat's rankings (No. 50). IU also is tied for No. 6 in the Midwest District, with the top six teams automatically qualifying for NCAA Regionals. The Cream and Crimson is even with Louisville and sits behind Kentucky, Michigan State, Purdue, Minnesota and Kent State.

Individually, senior Jeff Overton is rated No. 4 by Golfstat and No. 7 by 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.
Seibert Earns First Top 10

Firing the low round of any golfer in the field, Scott Seibert recorded a final-round 67, the second-lowest score of his career, to capture his first career top 10 at the Pinehurst Invitational (March 28-29) . The junior's career-best round came on the second 18 at the Xavier Invitational, where he claimed a 66 on Oct. 13, 2003. Seibert completed the tournament at 218 (76-75-67) to finish in fourth place, joining senior Jeff Overton in the top five. Overton claimed his seventh career runner-up finish.

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).

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Overton Is 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.

Marek Goes Low
Junior Brad Marek closed strong with a final-round 73 at the Pioneer Classic (March 15-16) after matching his career-low round with a 69 on the second 18. Marek tied for 26th place with a three-round 217 (75-69-73). His total equaled the lowest 54-hole score of his career, which he set at the 2002 Northern Intercollegiate. Marek has recorded top-30 finishes in two of his last three events. He tied for 21st at the Hyatt Plantation Club Intercollegiate (March 6-8).

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 October.
*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.

Mayer Announces Recruits
Indiana men's golf head coach Mike Mayer announced that Drew Allenspach (Sugar Land, Texas), Seth Brandon (Dalton, Ga.), Jorge Campillo (Caceres, Spain) and Brandon Pike (LaFontaine, Ind.) have signed letters of intent to attend Indiana University beginning in the fall semester of 2005.

Knapp Walking On
Columbus North High School graduate Aaron Knapp earned a spot as a freshman walk-on for the Indiana men's golf team. At Columbus North, Knapp finished 11th at the state championships in 2002 as a sophomore, 14th in 2003 and 19th in 2004. He was an all-state selection as a junior and closed out his high school career with a 76.03 scoring average.

The Columbus, Ind., native has yet to see any tournament action for IU, but he had success with his teammates at the New Year's Invitational on Jan. 6-9. Knapp finished tied for 35th, with fellow Hoosier Scott Seibert, at 295 (74-76-71-74).

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.