Tournament Results
EDMOND (April 5) – A birdie-birdie start ignited a near-record round for Josh Creel and paved the way for yet another Central Oklahoma tournament championship here Tuesday, this one a runaway triumph in the UCO/KickingBird Golf Classic.
The No. 5-ranked Bronchos claimed their seventh title in 11 tries, shooting a sizzling nine-under-par 271 to pull away from a three-stroke lead and cruise to a 19-shot victory over No. 6 Abilene Christian (865-884).
Cameron was third in the two-day, 54-hole tournament at 888, followed by Washburn (895) and Midwestern State (904). UCO's second-team unit finish15th in the 19-team field with a 921 total.
Creel birdied four of his first six holes, was seven-under after eagling the par-5 12th – his ninth of the day – and got it to eight-under before finishing with a 63, one shot off the course record. It's the lowest round in Division II this year by two strokes.
Creel's blazing round overshadowed under-par efforts by teammates Colby Shrum and Baer Aneshansley. Shrum had a closing 69 to finish with a 215 total in sharing medalist honors with CU's Jason Timmis, while Aneshansley fired a two-under 68 in tying for third with Creel at 216.
Creel, Shrum and Aneshansley were the only golfers to break par in the final round as 75.66 was the average score for the day.
The Bronchos also got a 71 from Andrew Green and a 72 from Chris Muriana, with Green tying for ninth and Muriana tying for 13th in the individual standings.
“Josh had easily one of the best rounds I've ever seen for a college player,” UCO coach Dax Johnston said. “It wasn't that easy out there with the way the wind was blowing and he was on all day. He played just phenomenal.
“But I can't say enough about how well my whole team played today. Colby and Bear both hit it great and we threw out a 72, which is awesome to see from a team standpoint.”
Creel, who struggled to rounds of 79-74 on Monday, started his day on No. 4 and promptly birdied the first two holes. Consecutive birdies at Nos. 8 and 9 got him to four-under through six holes and he birdied No. 10 before running in a long eagle putt on the 12th hole to get to seven-under.
A two-putt birdie on the par-5 15th hole had the sophomore at eight-under and he stayed there with four straight pars. Creel then drove over the 330-yard par-4 second hole – his 17th -- and into a bad lie, which led to his only bogey before a routine par on the par-3 third finished off the stellar round.
“I hit a lot of greens, which I didn't do the two rounds yesterday,” Creel said. “When I did miss the green I got up and down for the most part, except for a slip up on my second to last hole. Other than that, it was a good round. I putted great, hit the ball pretty well and kept it in play.”
Shrum made four birdies during the one-under round that gave him his ninth career tournament title. He made the turn at even-par and bogeyed the par-4 10th hole before back-to-back birdies on Nos. 12 and 13 got him to one-under.
The senior All-American two-putted for birdie from just off the green on the par-5 15th to get to two-under and then parred the next two holes before making bogey on No. 18, which played as the toughest hole throughout the tournament.
Aneshansley overcame a double bogey on No. 10 in tying his career-low. He birdied the sixth and ninth holes to make the turn at one-under 34 before hitting out of bounds and making six on the par-4 10th, but rebounded with four straight birdies on Nos. 12-13-14-15.
That got the junior to three-under and he gave one shot back with a bogey on No. 17 before getting up-and-down out of the bunker on the 18th hole to polish off the 68.
The Bronchos are off next week before traveling to San Antonio, Texas April 18-20 for the Lone Star Conference Championships.
