The rain and muddy conditions did not hinder the Salukis, as the team placed third at the ASU Red Wolves Intercollegiate with a combined score of 878.

Their finish is the highest the Saluki’s have placed in any tournament this season.  Coach Leroy Newton said he was impressed with the team’s play in rainy conditions.

“I was really tickled with the way these kids played,” Newton said.  “This is the toughest tournament with the most schools that we have played this season and, truthfully, when the kids started playing and weren’t worrying about the mud and the rain, they showed me that maybe they can live up to the potential that I have for them.”

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The Saluki seniors Jake Erickson and Brandon Cauldwell led the team in the tournament’s scoring.  Erickson shot a career-low 67 in the tournament, leading to a tie for fifth place in the Red Wolf Intercollegiate. Cauldwell’s score of 216 was good enough for the tournament’s 10th spot.  That marks the first time two Salukis have placed in the top ten of a tournament this season.

Erickson’s play was recognized by the Missouri Valley Conference, as he was named the MVC Golfer of the week. His score of 213 in the tournament was the seventh-lowest round in SIU history. Erickson said he was excited to win it again.

“It’s exciting,” he said, “I haven’t done it in a while, and usually when you get it the team did well too. Last year, I won it a few times, and I hadn’t done it all year yet … it felt good to win it.”

Junior Caleb Harms was the highest-scoring non-senior on the roster. He tied for thirty-sixth in the tournament with a 224 score. Freshman Drew Novara competed as an individual in the tournament. His 229 score was tied for 60th overall.

The Salukis third place finish was the highest of any MVC team in the tournament.  The next highest was Missouri St. placing ninth and the Bears were 11 strokes behind SIU. Cauldwell said the Salukis score is because of their work in the recent weather at practice.

“I think (our play) comes from all the hard work we have been putting in at practice,” he said.  “The weather hasn’t really been cooperating, but playing in it is really showing out there on the course.”

Coach Newton said the Saluki’s scores over the past few tournaments are not as low as they could be because of the weather.

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“Southern is not as bad as their score has been,” Newton said. “Wichita stays out west, and they never play in what we have played in last weekend.  So all their averages are 72, 63, 74 and we have played in some conditions where 80 was a good score.  Now they have to be careful that (our higher averages) might really be good scores.”

The dawgs will have an 11-day break to wait for better weather before they travel to Nashville, Tenn. for the Big Blue Intercollegiate, their final tournament before the start of the MVC Championships.