Ekert Caps Fall With Runner-Up Finish in Mexico

Friday, October 25

Monterrey, Mexico

8:10 AM

University of Richmond

Monterrey Collegiate Classic

10/27/2024 | Men's Golf

Results

MONTERREY, MEXICO — Cole Ekert finished his final fall season with one of the best performances in program history, shooting a 12-under 204 to place second among 73 golfers at the Monterrey Collegiate Classic at Club Campestre. Ekert, a senior from Chatham, N.J., matched the second-lowest 54-hole score in program history, trailing only his 13-under 203 at last year's VCU Shootout. (Ekert equaled the 12-under 204 shot by Daniel Walker at Golden Eagle in 2013.)

Ekert carded a 3-under 69 in Round 1, a 5-under 67 in Round 2, and a 4-under 68 in Round 3, making his move with four birdies in a five-hole stretch on his final nine. He finished one shot behind Juan Luis Bethencourt from UTRGV for the fifth top-two finish of his career and first since earning medalist honors at the Any Given Tuesday Collegiate last April.

As a team, the Spiders placed fourth in the 12-team field with a score of 14-under par (850). UR finished behind Utah State (-15), Loyola Maryland (-16), and North Dakota State (-26) and in front of eight teams, including a trio of Atlantic 10 rivals (VCU, Davidson, and George Washington). It was Richmond's fifth top-five finish in five events this fall.

"I'm very proud of how we played all fall," said Ekert. "[Finishing] top five in every event is proof that we have a really deep and consistent team. I had basically no expectations going into the season given that we are generally such a young team, but I'm really happy with where we're at and am excited to continue to prove ourselves in the spring."

Freshman Carson Baez tied for 17th at 4-under par (212), securing his fourth straight top-20 result. Senior Patrick Isztwan also finished in red figures at 1-under par (215), tied for 25th in the field.

Junior Drew Carlin tied for 41st at 5-over par (221) and freshman Tommy Sharps tied for 59th at 10-over par (226) in his collegiate debut. Playing as an individual, sophomore Jack LaPiana tied for 47th at 6-over following three straight rounds of 74 (+2).

Richmond has finished in the top five in its first five events of a season for the first time since 2010-11, when the Spiders placed in the top five in their first six events.

"We have a really solid squad," said coach Adam Decker. "A lot of guys have the ability to shoot under par in tournaments. We got into contention several times which is always the goal. There are definitely things that each guy has to work on during the offseason to be ready to play great in the spring. It's great to have all team members bought into our common goals and pushing one another to shoot lower."

Richmond's spring season will begin on February 10-11 with the Atlantic 10-MAC Match Play event in Dade City, Fla.