Texas Tech Athletics
NCAA Central Regional
Dresser Leads Raiders to 12th Place Finish
May 17, 2003 | Men's Golf
May 17, 2003
LUBBOCK, Texas - One day after posting the best round of his young collegiate career, Texas Tech freshman Andrew Dresser (Carrollton, Texas/Creekview) carded a 68 to finish in an eighth place tie at the NCAA Central Regional at Colbert Hills Golf Course in Manhattan, Kan. Dresser's personal-best 211 was four shots off of the lead.
The Red Raiders, who entered the 27-team field as the 24th seed, finished 12th overall after turning in the fifth-best round of the day at 285. Tech shot 10-over par for the tournament and missed advancing to its second-straight NCAA Championships by four strokes. Dresser missed advancing as an individual by one stroke. The NCAA allows the top two individuals not affiliated with one of the top 10 teams to advance to the championships.
Tech began the day in a 16th-place tie and found itself as high as 11th early in the round. Solid rounds from Dresser and fellow freshman Erik Stenman (Tampere, Finland), who shot a 69 Saturday, enabled the Red Raiders to make a move toward the top 10. Stenman entered the final round in a 98-place tie, but moved up to a tie in 48th place after posting his best round as a Red Raider.
Junior Brad Jacobson (Bryant, S.D./Hamlin) shot a 73, 10 strokes better than his second-round 83, and finished 132nd. Senior Brooks Kelly (Sierra Vista, Ariz./Buena) finished in a 77th-place tie after shooting back-to-back 75s, while senior Mark Hull (San Antonio, Texas/Churchill) carded a 78 in the third round to finish tied at 109th.
Oklahoma State won the team title and finished five strokes ahead of second-place Illinois, which led following each of the first two rounds. North Carolina State finished third and was the only other team to shoot below par. North Carolina and Texas tied in fourth place, followed by Kentucky in sixth. SMU, defending national champion Minnesota and Arkansas all tied in seventh place, while Wichita State rounds out the NCAA Championship qualifiers in 10th place.
Although the University of Houston didn't qualify as a team for the Central Regional, Brett Callas, a Cougar golfer invited to play as an individual, won medallist honors by one stroke over Illinois' Patrick Nagle. Chris Stroud of Lamar University joins Callas as the second individual not associated with one of the top 10 teams to advance to the NCAA Championships in Stillwater, Okla. Stroud finished a stroke ahead of Dresser in a fifth-place tie.
