GREENSBORO, N.C.—One of the best team scoring rounds in the history of the program fueled the Oglethorpe men's golf team's fourth-place finish at the Gate City Invitational Monday and Tuesday at Forest Oaks Country Club. Jackson Hiller led the No. 6 Stormy Petrels with a co-medalist individual performance.
The Petrels fired a blistering 15 under par in the middle round, which took place Monday as part of the 36-hole opening day. All four counting scores were well under par that round, with Diego Passos leading it at 6 under and Hiller following next at 4 under.
Hiller finished the event as Oglethorpe's top scorer at 6 under, shooting 72-68-70, to earn the second tournament win of his career. Passos (73-66-81) and Ryan Dunn (77-69-74) followed next at T27 overall, and freshman Barton Abstein (78-70-74) debuted for the Petrels in T37.
Oglethorpe (300-273-293) was in the hunt for the team win, even holding a lead in the closing stretch after Corbin Scott posted back-to-back birdies on holes 18 and 1. The Petrels held a one-stroke lead with approximately four holes to play, but could not hang on.
"This was a heavy-weight fight that ultimately came down to five of the top nine teams in the nation battling it out at the end," said Head Coach Jim Owen. "Emory (No.3), Sewanee (No. 5), Oglethorpe (No. 6), Huntingdon (No. 7) and Carnegie Mellon (No. 9) all had a chance to win this tournament as all five were within four strokes of the lead with about six holes to play."
Tournament Notes
- Oglethorpe's 15 under par middle round came within four strokes of the program record of 19 under, set in 2023.
- Passos posted two eagles for the event to be one of only four players with multiple eagles. He pitched in from approximately 35 yards for his second eagle of the tournament, coming on the par 5 11th during Monday's second round.
- Dunn also posted one eagle, on the same hole during the same round.
- Oglethorpe ranked second in the field on par 5 scoring, shooting 15 under.
- Oglethorpe ranked third for birdies with 46.
- Hiller led the field for birdies with 14 while Abstein ranked fifth with 12.
- Hiller also ranked fifth for par 4 scoring at 2 under.
Up Next
Oglethorpe hosts the NCAA Division III National Championships Preview next week at Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida. The 54-hole event will feature 23 of the top 26 teams from the final 2024-25 national poll.
