Men's Golf Equals Best-Ever A-10 Finish, Climbing To Third With Final Round 289
04/26/2009 | Men's Golf
April 26, 2009
SpiderTV: SPIDERS FINISH THIRD AT A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP 
ORLANDO, Fla. - Junior Robert Lindstrom shot a 2-under-par 69 to lead the Richmond men's golf team to Sunday-best round of 5-over 289, as the Spiders took third to match their best-ever Atlantic 10 Championship finish.
Richmond was in sixth after a first round 306 on the par-71, 6,887-yard Mission Inn Resort El Campeon course, but improved to a 302 Saturday, moving up to fifth and closing the gap on Temple and St. Bonaventure.
Lindstrom's 69 and sophomore Michael Shrader's 1-over 72, along with 74s from senior Tim Courtney and sophomore Sam Beach gave Richmond Sunday's low round (289), which was the second-lowest team round of the tournament.
That secured Richmond's best-ever finish at the Atlantic 10 Championship, matching third-place finishes in 2004 and 2005. Richmond has finished in the top-5 in all eight Atlantic 10 Championships it has competed in.
 Junior Robert Lindstrom shot a 69 Sunday, one of just five sub-par rounds in the tournament.  |
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"I'm really proud of how they played," Richmond head coach Adam Decker said. "The first day we dug ourselves a pretty deep hole, but after that we kept our composure, hung in there and never gave up. Today was a nice way for the seniors to end their careers, finishing with a low round and tying the best finish ever at the A-10 Championship."
Richmond finished 10 shots ahead of fourth-place Temple, 17 shots ahead of fifth-place Rhode Island and 20 shots ahead of sixth-place St. Bonaventure, all teams that they trailed after Friday's opening round. Charlotte (872) won its fourth Atlantic 10 Championship in as many years in the league, while Xavier finished second at 882.
"We really could have gotten down and discouraged after feeling like we gave a lot of shots away on Friday, but we didn't let that get to us," Decker said. "It was windy out there today, those weren't the most ideal conditions, but we really played well."
Shrader led the Spiders with a ninth-place finish after his 1-over 72 on Sunday. The Midlothian, Va. native shot a 73 in the first round and a 77 in the second to finish at 9-over 222. The transfer from Randolph-Macon finished two shots out of fifth place and three shots out of fourth as he earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference honors for finishing in the top-10.
"I'm really happy for Shrader finishing in the top-10 and making all-conference," Decker that is something he can really build on for next year."
Lindstrom tied for 12th at 11-over 224. He had shot an 81 in the opening round, but improved to a 3-over-par 74 in the second round and then shot the final round 69, one of just five sub-par scores in the tournament and one of three rounds in the 60s. It was Lindstrom's lowest round of the season and his second-lowest round of his Richmond career, after a 68 at the ODU/Seascape Classic in the fall of 2007.
Courtney tied for 15th at 13-over 226, improving in each round from an opening round 77, to a second round 75 and a final round 74. It was the senior's third straight top-20 finish at the Atlantic 10 Championship. The Midlothian, Va. native was an Atlantic 10 All-Conference selection as a sophomore when he tied for 10th at the conference championship.
Beach finished 18th at 15-over 228, also improving each day with an opening round 78, second-round 76 and final round 74. Senior Lawrence Lessing tied for 34th at 239 (78-78-83).