HOUSTON, Texas – Chicago State men's golf finished its season today with a third-place finish at the inaugural Great West Conference Championships, held at the Sierra Plantation Golf Center in Houston, Texas.
CSU closed the three-day tournament with a team score of 969 to finish four strokes ahead of North Dakota. Host Houston Baptist tallied a score of 900, including a 295 in the final round, to capture the team championship.
The Cougars were led by junior Chris Blankenship (Oak Lawn, IL/Moraine Valley CC) (Oak Lawn, Ill.) with a three-day total of 233 that included scoring a 75 in the final two rounds for an eighth-place finish. Freshman Andrew Pleasant (Louisville, KY/Ballard) (Louisville, Ky.) placed ninth in the tournament after carding a total score of 239. For their efforts, Blankenship and Pleasant earned Second Team All-Great West honors following the tournament.
Junior Briano Molinaro (Chicago, IL/Lincoln Park HS) (Chicago, Ill.) placed 15th with a score of 246, while freshman Lourne Boutte (Richton Park, Ill.) finished in a tie for 18th place with North Dakota's Pat Thomas after recording a score of 251. Freshman Josh Worely (Calumet City, IL/Home School) (Calumet City, Ill.) carded a three-day score of 276 to finish 25 th for CSU.
Winning the conference's individual title was Texas-Pan American's Armen Kirakossian after defeating Jordan Jeffers of HBU in the first hole of a sudden death playoff. Kirakossian and Jeffers finished the tournament in a tie for first with a 219 before the playoff.
