Final Results

SILVIS, Ill. – A full team effort in the third round launched the University of Evansville men's golf team to a finish of sixth place at the Missouri Valley Conference Championship at TPC at Deere Run.
 
All five Purple Aces golfers shot rounds of 75 or below as the squad jumped three spots from its standing following the second round of action.  Weather put a halt to play on Monday at the midway point of the second round.  On Tuesday, the action began at 8 a.m. with the completion of round two before playing the final 18.
 
Finishing in a tie for 10^th place was sophomore Alex Turner.  He finished with a 74 in the first round and, after posting a 77, rebounded with his low round of the event in the third trip around the course.  Turner carded a 73 in the third round en route to a 224.
 
His efforts landed him a spot on the All-Conference Team.  He is the sixth UE men's golfer to be named to the squad while making it three years in a row an Evansville player has made the team.
 
Shooting the low round of the event for UE was another sophomore – Will Knights.  After scores of 80 and 78, Knights saved his best for last.  He registered a 1-under 70 to complete the event with a 228.  His performance boosted him into a tie for 20^th on the final leaderboard.
 
Three shots behind Knights was senior Parker Hensley.  In his final event with the Purple Aces, Hensley improved in each of the three rounds.  Hensley began with an 81 before carding rounds of 76 and 74 to finish in a tie for 29^th with a 231.
 
Fellow senior Quinn Vilneff posted a 232 to finish one behind Hensley.  Vilneff also had his best round on Tuesday.  He began with rounds of 78 and 79 before completing Tuesday's play with a 75.  Rick Voyvodic also finished the season on a high note.  He followed up rounds of 79 and 80 with a 74.  The last round saw him jump into a tie for 34^th with a 233.
 
As a team, the Aces shot the 3^rd-lowest round of the final 18 with a 291.  That jumped UE into sixth place with a 912, just seven strokes out of the top five.
 
Wichita State hung on to take the conference championship.  The Shockers led by six strokes following the first round, but Illinois State cut the gap to one in round two.  A thrilling finish came down to the end as the Shockers finished the final round with a 284, edging the Redbirds, who posted a 286.  The win marked the seventh-straight MVC Championship for WSU as all five of their players recorded top 20 finishes.
 
For the tournament, Wichita State totaled an 874 while Illinois State checked in with an 877.  Bradley (897), Northern Iowa (900) and Missouri State (905) rounded out the top five.
 
While their teams were battling for top honors, WSU and ISU saw their top players battle to the end for medalist honors.  It came down to the third playoff hole as Chandler Rusk of WSU defeated Tyler Gentilella of the Redbirds.  Both finished their three rounds with a 215.  Ironically, it was the second time in the last four years that the medalist was decided by a playoff.  Redbird Wils Hawn took third place with a 216.
 
Evansville finishes up a strong spring that saw the team pick up victories at the Don Benbow Intercollegiate and the Bradley Invitational.  Playing a pivotal role in that success were seniors Parker Hensley and Quinn Vilneff.  The duo provided great leadership on the course, in the classroom and in the community for the Purple Aces.
 
With his performance in his final tournament, Vilneff clinched the third-best average in school history.  Over 82 rounds at UE, Vilneff accumulated 6,153 strokes to finish at 75.04.  Hensley, a 4-year player for the Aces, finished his career just outside the top seven on the all-time list.  In 99 rounds, Hensley posted an average of 76.81.