NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans men's golf team will open the spring portion of the 2015-16 season on Monday when the Privateers head to Thibodeaux, Louisiana, to take part in the Atchafalaya Invitational at the par-72, 7,398-yard Atchafalya at Idlewild.
The teams will play 36 holes on Monday, Feb. 22, before closing out the event with 18 holes on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Monday's opening round will start at 7:45 a.m. with the second round slated to begin shortly thereafter. Tuesday's final round will be a shotgun start with tee times still to be determined.
"We finished up the fall pretty well," UNO head coach Chris McCarter said. "We were very competitive and started getting pretty good play throughout the lineup. If we can get everybody involved as we head into the spring, we should be pretty competitive. Time will tell and we'll see what happens at the Atchafalaya Intercollegiate.
"I've got a great group of guys. As a group, they're as good as it gets. They're phenomenal students and they're really talented on the golf course. We just need to get everybody on the same page and get productivity throughout the lineup."
The Privateers are one of five Southland Conference teams participating in the event, joining Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Incarnate Word and host Nicholls. Rounding out the 13-team field are Mobile, North Dakota, North Dakota State, Omaha, South Dakota, ULM, UT-Rio Grande Valley and Wichita State.
The last time out, UNO wrapped the fall schedule with a fifth-place showing at the Arkansas State Fall Beach Classic where the Privateers shot a 36-hole 591. Junior
Erik Dege and senior
Greg Palmer shared team-high honors with identical 145s to finish tied for eighth in the overall field, and
Michael Sotile was next with a 149 to finish tied for 23rd.
A last year's Atchafalaya Invite, New Orleans finished fourth among the eight participating teams with a three-round total of 927. The Privateers entered the final round tied for the team lead after firing a 300 in the middle 18 before carding a 311 on the final day to account for the final standings. Dege finished tied for second in the tournament with a six-over par 222 and Palmer was next with a 236 to finish tied for 16th.
The Atchafalaya Intercollegiate is the first of five regular-season tournaments on tap for the spring semester as UNO will take part in the Colin Montgomerie HBU Spring Invitational from Feb. 29-March 1, the Grover Page Classic from March 14-15, the LSU Invitational on March 29 and the Arkansas State Red Wolves Intercollegiate from April 4-5. The Privateers will shoot for a spot in the NCAA Tournament when the team heads to McKinney, Texas, for the Southland Conference Championship from April 18-20.
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