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 Joe Ida |
The Wildcats, led by Fort Scott High graduate Joe Ida's third-place finish, fired a three-day total of 280-278-287--845 (19 under par) and held off a charge from Ohio State to win its first title since the 2003 Purina Classic.
K-State, which has placed in the top-5 in five events this season including two second place finishes, entered Sunday's final round three strokes behind San Diego, but the Toreros faded leaving the hot-shooting Buckeyes as the last threat. Ohio State, which opened the tournament with the third-worst round of 292, shot a 277 on Saturday and a 278 on Sunday but couldn't overtake K-State.
"We just went out and took the tournament," Kansas State head coach Tim Norris told kstatesports.com. "We didn't wait for anyone to play badly. I don't think the guys were tentative, everyone had some bad shots and some bad holes, but they bounced right back. That was really key today because the course played a little bit tougher. There was a little bit of wind today and some of the pins were tucked back into the corners."
Ida was the top shooter for Kansas State on Sunday with a 2-under 70. His three-day total of 68-69-70--207 (-9) placed him in a tie for third overall and is the seventh-best 54-hole score in K-State history. Ida was seven strokes behind Boise State's Troy Merritt (-16), who captured the tournament's individual crown for the second-consecutive season.
As a team the Wildcats have re-written the K-State record books this season. The 2007-08 squad shot the lowest round in school history (826 at the Pacific Invitational) and the fourth-best round (844 at the Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate) last fall and the 845 shot over the weekend is the fifth-best 54-hole team score in school history.
K-State will compete in the the Shocker Classic Monday and Tuesday at Wichita Country Club.
Information for this summary comes from kstatesports.com.