2008 CCIW Men’s Golf Championship Preview

NAPERVILLE , Ill. – Bolingbrook Golf Club will be the site of the first two rounds of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Men’s Golf Championship Friday and Saturday.

For the second year in a row, the CCIW will use a four-round, 72-hole format spread out over two weekends. The first two rounds will be held April 18-19 at Bolingbrook Golf Club in Bolingbrook, Ill., while the third and fourth rounds will be held May 2-3 at Cantigny Golf in Wheaton, Ill.

The winner of the four-day championship will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championship, May 13-16 at the Chateau Elan Resort in Braselton, Ga.

Carthage comes in as the two-time defending champion, winning the 2007 championship with a four-day score of 1232 (303-310-302-317) at Bolingbrook Golf Club and TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill. The Red Men’s Tyler Wollberg (Mundelein, Ill.) finished second at last season’s championship with a four-day score of 308 (76-79-73-80). Wollberg recently tied for fifth (70-79-149) at the Loras College “Duhawk Invitational” April 6-7. Teammate Matt Carr (Galesburg, Ill.), who placed fifth at last year’s conference championship, also tied for fifth with Wollberg at Loras (75-74-149). As a team, Carthage placed third out of 20 teams with a team score of 619 (299-320).

Illinois Wesleyan placed second the last two seasons at the conference championship, but qualified for a spot at the national tournament in 2007 as an at-large bid. The Titans finished with a four-day team score of 1236 (307-305-311-313) last season. Mike DeRuntz (Western Springs, Ill./ Lyons), a sixth place finisher at last year’s conference championship, led his team to a second place finish at the Duhawk Invitational. DeRuntz (73-75-148) and teammate Matt Wennmaker (Oregon, Ill./H.S.) (72-76-148) finished in a four-way tie for first while as a team, Illinois Wesleyan finished with a score of 614 (302-312).

Elmhurst jumped two spots from fifth to third place between the 2006 and 2007 championships as Kyle Mann (Hinsdale, Ill./Central) finished 14 th and will play as the No. 3 player for head coach Dave Di Tomasso’s squad at this year’s championship. The Bluejays recently placed second at the University of St. Francis Spring Invitational as Josh Magee (Ionia, Mich./H.S.) was tied for fifth with a one-day score of 77. Elmhurst also finished tied for third place at the rain-shortened Millikin Big Blue Classic last weekend. The tournament’s second day was shortened from 18 holes to nine holes due to rain. Kurt Dietrick (Oak Lawn, Ill./Richards) tied for ninth with a score of 122 (80-42).

Millikin (327-310-328-324-1289) finished fourth at the 2007 conference championships. The Big Blue recently finished seventh at it’s own Big Blue Classic as Sam Osborne (Forsyth, Ill./Maroa-Forsyth) led the way with a score of 122 to tie for eighth. Earlier in the week, Millikin was a second place finisher at the Illinois College McNaughton Memorial Tournament. J.B. Spillane (Mount Pleasant, Iowa/H.S.) was the Big Blue’s top individual, taking second with a 74. Sean Liston (St. Charles, Mo./Orchard Farm) tied for fifth with a 75.

Wheaton (312-324-329-325-1290) will look to improve upon last year’s fifth place finish as the Thunder returns their top individual from last year in Scotty Anderson (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson). Anderson placed 11 th in 2007 with a score of 318 (77-81-78-82). Anderson recently led the Thunder to a first place finish at the St. Francis Spring Invitational last Tuesday with a team score of 317. Anderson was tied for third with a score of 76. Chase Yacko (Toledo, Ohio/ Sylvania Northview) finished in a tie for eighth with a score of 79.

Augustana’s Eric Johnson (Vernon Hills, Ill./H.S.) took home medalist honors last season with a four-round score of 307 (72-82-74-79) and will be the No. 2 player for head coach Grey Giovanine’s squad this season. As a team, the Vikings finished sixth with a score of 1295 (308-330-327-330) in 2007. The Vikings were scheduled to play in their own invitational last weekend, but the event was canceled due to inclement weather. Augustana recently finished eighth at the Knox College Prairie Fire Classic as Kyle Weigand (Franklin Park, Ill./ Leyden) finished tied for 26 th with a two-day score of 158. Weigand will play as the No. 4 player this weekend.

North Park (seventh in 2007 with a team score of 1308) recently tied for fifth at the rain-shortened Big Blue Spring Classic. The Vikings finished with a score of 501 (345-156) after 27 holes of competition. Andy Johnson (Lake Bluff, Ill./ Lake Forest) was the team’s highest finisher as he tied for fifth place with a score of 121 (80-41). Johnson will be playing at the No. 2 slot for the Vikings this weekend.

North Central (eighth in 2007 with a team score of 1356) will be led by new coach Lloyd Krumlauf, a North Central alum and assistant football coach. This is Krumlauf’s second stint as the men’s golf coach, previously serving in the same role from 1981-83. The Cardinals recently defeated Benedictine at Tamarack Golf Club, shooting a team score of 306. Matt Pierce (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton-Warrenville South) and Jake Thompson (Pearl City, Ill./H.S.) each shot a 77. Thompson and Pierce will play in the top two spots for North Central this weekend.