Heyland Leads Navy to 14th-Place Finish at Columbia Invitational

Oct. 26, 2008

GALLOWAY, N.J. - Sophomore Marcus Heyland (Fort Madison, Iowa) turned in a team-low 20-over par 233 to pace the Midshipmen to a 14th-place finish at the Columbia Invitational at the Galloway National Golf Course in New Jersey on Sunday. Unable to overcome a six-stroke deficit to find its way into the top 10, Navy actually dropped a spot on the final day after posting a 44-over par 328 in the final round to finish the three-day, 54-hole tournament with a 967 (+115).

TCU was able to hold off 10th-ranked Florida to take the tournament crown with a three-round score of 894 (+42), while the Gators fell in for second place with a 51-over par 903. Eastern Kentucky (301-312-312) and St. John's (301-317-307) finished in a tie for third with a 73-over par 925, while Louisiana-Monroe rounded out the top five with a 76-over par 928 (312-313-303).

Though Penn's Michael Blodgett held the individual lead through the first two rounds, his final round 79 (+8) proved to be costly. Blodgett dropped to fourth in the final standings, while Florida's Tim McKenney and TCU's Tom Hoge tied for medalist honors with an 8-over par 221. McKenney shot a 1-over par in the final round, while Hoge managed a 1-under par to earn a share of the win.

Heyland, who came into the weekend's competition having played in just three career tournaments including one this season, seemed to be the lone Navy player to feel comfortable on the course. He turned in an 8-over par 79 in the opening round and put together back-to-back 77s to place 24th in the tournament. Earlier this year, Heyland impressed head coach Pat Owen with an eighth-place finish at the Mids' fall classic.

Team captain David Miller (Chillicothe, Ohio) opened up the tournament with a 6-over par 77, but struggled for the remainder of the tournament, including the final round where he posted a 16-over par 87. He, along with fellow senior Eric Stinson (Spotsylvania, Va.), tied for 59th with a 33-over par 246. Stinson, meanwhile, turned in his low round of the tournament on Sunday, posting a 10-over par 81.

Sophomore Ben Hayes (Carmichael, Calif.) placed 63rd with a 35-over par 248, while Ryan Wielgus (Bethesda, Md.), who withdrew from Saturday's competition, came back to shoot an 83 in the final round.

Freshman Collier Jones (Little Rock, Ark.), who accompanied the team to New Jersey but played as an individual, placed 53rd with a 30-over par 243. After carding a 4-over par 75 in the second round, he turned in an 11-over par 82 on the final day.

This weekend's action at the Columbia Invitational marked the fall finale for the Midshipmen.