For the second time this spring, rain threatened to cancel the final round of a golf tournament involving the ISU program. The rain held off long enough for the final round of the Shocker Invitational to be completed, with the ISU team finishing in sixth place.

The host team from Wichita State topped all schools with a total of 839, beating out Colorado State and Oklahoma City University by six strokes. Washington State completed the tournament in a distant fourth, followed by a logjam of teams.

Five squads finished within five shots of each other for fifth through ninth place, including the Cyclones.

Matt Gatchel completed his three rounds just out of top-ten status. The sophomore shot an even-par 213 to place in a tie for 11th position.

Kevin Oswald also had a top-20 showing, tying for 18th place at 216. Phil Slovitt shot 220 to finish in a tie for 29th position.

Jamie Faidley ended up at 228, one stroke ahead of fellow Cyclone Josh Clay, who rounded out the scoring for the Cardinal and Gold.

Andreas Rydholm of Oklahoma City took advantage of low-scoring conditions to shoot an 11-under par total of 202. Nick Underwood and Michael Roberts of Wichita State completed the top three at 205 and 206, respectively.

“The conditions were pretty easy,” ISU head coach Jay Horton said. “They were a lot different than the tournaments we have been playing in.”

“The weather was great,” Gatchel said. “The wind wasn’t up, which is sort of not characteristic for Kansas. [The conditions] were really ideal for scoring.”

After struggling over his last few events, Gatchel found himself leading the Cyclones in scoring when the invitational was finished.

“It’s a position I want to be in. I’ve had trouble in the last 4 to 5 tournaments we’ve played in,” he said. “It’s definitely a confidence builder, and I feel pretty good going down to [the next tournament].”

Horton said, many of the ISU players were pleased with their performances. He credited the turnaround to a shift in the squad’s focus.

“I think they quit worrying about what could go wrong and just got back to playing golf,” he said. “They were just more relaxed, and as good scores came out, we became even more comfortable.”

The ‘Clones will get back on the course this weekend as they head to Branson, Mo. to compete at the Southwest Missouri State Intercollegiate. The tournament will be the second time that the Cardinal and Gold have performed in a span of seven days.

“The [players are] excited to play because after playing well, everybody’s looking forward to getting out [there] again,” Horton said. “I think they’re just looking to go down there and have a good time.”

This weekend also signals the last warm-up that the Cyclones will have before taking part in the Big 12 tournament later this month.

The ISU team wants to have another good performance before going to Hutchinson, Kan. to battle for the conference title.

“I’d like to build on last week’s performance and have some confidence going into the Big 12 [tournament], which is going to be very difficult,” Gatchel said.