Taylor Earns Runner-Up Finish at Ackerman-Allen Shootout
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Taylor men's golf team came up four shots shy in its bid for the Ackerman-Allen Shootout title on Monday, settling for a runner-up finish in the final event of the regular season.
Taylor ace Javan Johnson led the Trojans once again as the redshirt-sophomore posted a two-round total of 1-under par 143 to claim second place. Johnson tallied a 3-under par 69 during the opening round of the event then carded a 2-over par 74 in the afternoon as winds stiffening and playing conditions became much more difficult. The Franklin, Indiana native finished one shot behind Parkland Community College's Corey Neville (74-67). The runner-up finish was Johnson's seventh top-5 finish of the season.
The Trojans opened the day with a 292 in the first round to climb to the top of the leaderboard at the midway point of the tournament. In addition to the 69 from Johnson the Trojans also counted a 72 from Noah Ross, 74 from Drew Pickering, and a 77 from Erik Fahlen. Adam Kasitz added a 79 as the TU drop score.
Taylor held a 1-shot advantage over Parkland entering the afternoon round but Parkland's Neville caught fire to spark a charge for the Cobras. Neville blistered the front nine of the Ackerman-Allen Golf Course in round two, posting a 31 that included a pair of eagles on the front nine par-5's.
Parkland tallied a team score of 298 in the final round while Taylor slipped to second place with a 303 in round two, finishing four shots behind Parkland.
Johnson paced TU in the second round as well with a 74 while Ross carded a 75, Fahlen added a 76 and Kasitz tallied a 78. Pickering signed for 81 as the TU drop score in the afternoon.
Ross continued his strong play this spring with a tie for fourth place to earn a spot on the all-tournament team. The sophomore finished at 3-over par 147 (72-75). Fahlen earned a top-10 finish at 153 (77-76) while Pickering finished in 14th place (74-81) and Kasitz tied for 18th place (79-78).
Taylor's reserve squad also competed in the event with junior Jason Iler leading the way with a tie for 15th place at 156 (77-79). Freshman Lance VanErmen (77-85) and senior Keegan White (83-79) tied for 31st. Junior Sam Yeager (81-83) tied for 37th place while freshman Austin Davis (90-80) finished in 47th place and sophomore Payne Moses (86-87) finished in 49th place.
Johnson led the field in par-3 (-2) and par-4 (-1) scoring for the tournament while Fahlen led the field in birdies (10). Pickering and Johnson both tallied 21 pars for the day, the second most of any player in the field. The Trojans led the field in birdies at 34 while finishing second in pars at 86.
The Trojans (292+303=595) finished ahead of several Crossroads League squads, including Spring Arbor (309+307=616), Indiana Wesleyan (304+317=621), Grace (315+316=631), Mount Vernon Nazarene (319+320=639), Huntington (319+325=644), and Bethel (329+336=665).
Taylor will now turn its attention to the Crossroads League Championship next week where TU will seek its fifth consecutive Crossroads League title.