Much like the changing seasons and the emergence of the spring months, Ohio has evolved and looks like a different group of players since the first half of the season last fall.
With three top-10 finishes in 2013, the Bobcats seemed to have resurfaced to true form before playing in the Mid-American Conference Championship in less than two weeks. The Bobcats had not finished among the top 10 teams of an invitation since the MAC Championship last May.
The Bobcats finished last out of 18 teams and 11th during a pair of road trips to the Carolinas in February and March, respectively. From there, though, Ohio seemed to pick up its game after heading closer to Athens, despite weather conditions worsening.
“We’re playing better,” said coach Bob Cooley. “We’re getting used to the bad weather we’re playing in. (Byron) Firestone, (Connor) Coldwater and (Michael) Lamping are certainly playing better.”
At the Hoosier Invitational in early April, seniors Firestone and Lamping, as well as junior Coldwater, tied for 20th in the tournament. The triad of Bobcats never posted an individual round score of more than three over par for the tournament, which led to a season-best fifth place finish.
“(Firestone, Coldwater, and Lamping are) very important for us to have a good team score, because those are probably our three best players,” said Cooley.
The following week, Ohio headed to a significantly more difficult course in The Glen Club at the Kemper Sports Intercollegiate.
Besides a third-round score of 77 (five-over par) from Firestone, the same trio of golfers that led the Bobcats a week earlier kept scores less than three over par daily yet again.
Sophomore Andrew Mlynarski, who has contended quite well in the past two tournaments, shot a team-best 73 (one over par) that beat out freshman and fellow Bobcat Brad Burgess for the tournament. Dropping one spot in the final round of play, Ohio finished in eighth.
A tie for 10th at the Penn State Rutherford Intercollegiate this weekend seems to be the most notable blunder for the Bobcats in more than a month. However, the Bobcats were competing without their best player, Firestone, who did not participate because of school matters and to give him a much-needed rest, according to Cooley.
Firestone’s absence gave fellow freshman Michael Engelman a chance to compete for a tournament spot in the MAC Championship.
Yet the best finish of a Bobcat this season was recorded by Coldwater, whose 79-72-71 finish for nine over par tied him for seventh place.
The last time Ohio played in the MAC Championship at Longaberger Golf Club was in 2010. No current players took part in the event.
ch115710@ohio.edu
