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Irish Holding Steady In Seventh Place At Conrad Rehling Invitational

March 13, 2004

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – With the benefit of clear skies and warm temperatures, the Notre Dame men’s golf team fired a solid nine-over par 297 in the second round of the Conrad Rehling Invitational on Saturday afternoon. The Irish maintained the seventh-place position they held at the start of the day, registering a two-day total of 601 (304-297) to stand 21 strokes behind tournament leader (and host) Alabama. This weekend’s tournament is being played at the par 72, 7,041-yard Ol’ Colony Golf Complex in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Sophomore Scott Gustafson (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS) has been at his best in second-round action this year, posting a team-best 72.86 stroke average over the middle 18 holes. Saturday proved to be no exception as the all-BIG EAST Conference selection carded the lowest score of the day (and tied the best mark of his career) with a three-under par 69, vaulting Gustafson into a tie for fourth place in the overall standings at two-under 142 (73-69). Kentucky’s John Holmes is the individual leader through two rounds at six-under par 138.

Besides Gustafson, three other Irish golfers matched or bettered their first-round scores on Saturday. Sophomore Tommy Balderston (Boca Raton, Fla./St. Andrews HS) hung up a two-over par 74 and stands among a group of 10 golfers in 18th place at six-over 150 (76-74) for the tournament. Freshman Cole Isban (South Bend, Ind./Mishawaka Marian HS) notched a 75 in the second round and is one stroke behind Balderston in 28th position at 151 (+7). Sophomore Mark Baldwin (Laconia, N.H./New Hampton Prep) logged a 79 for the second consecutive round and is tied for 62nd place at 158 (+14). Sophomore Eric Deutsch (Rochester, Minn./Lourdes HS) completed the Irish lineup with a second-round score of 80, putting him in 64th place at 159 (+15) for the tournament. In addition, freshman Shane Sigsbee (McKinney, Texas/McKinney HS) is competing as an individual and shot an 85 in the second round after having his opening-round score nullified when he did not sign his scorecard.

The third and final round of the Conrad Rehling Invitational is scheduled to begin Sunday at 8 a.m. (CST). Final results will be available on the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.und.com) upon completion of the tournament.

– ND –

TEAM RESULTS (36-hole totals): 1. Alabama 580 (293-287); 2. Jacksonville State 581 (286-295); 3. (tie) Kentucky 589 (299-290) and Mississippi 589 (292-297); 5. Kent State 591 (302-289); 6. Toledo 593 (297-296); 7. NOTRE DAME 601 (304-297); 8. UAB 602 (304-298); 9. North Florida 604 (307-297); 10. Georgia State 606 (305-301); 11. Michigan State 612 (304-308); 12. Tulane 615 (312-303); 13. Mississippi State 617 (304-313).

TOP 9 INDIVIDUALS (of 73): 1. John Holmes (Kentucky) 138 (69-69); 2. Lars Brovold (Alabama) 139 (68-71); 3. Clint Provost (Alabama) 140 (69-71); 4. (tie) Scott Gustafson (Notre Dame) 142 (73-69), Brad Heaven (Toledo) 142 (73-69) and Matias Anselmo (Jacksonville State) 142 (71-71); 7. (tie) Nick Mackay (Jacksonville State) 143 (71-72), Jonathan Fricke (Georgia State) 143 (70-73) and Marc Bourgeois (Kent State) 143 (72-71).

NOTRE DAME INDIVIDUALS (of 73): 4. (tie) Scott Gustafson 142 (73-69); 18. (tie) Tommy Balderston 150 (76-74); 28. (tie) Cole Isban 151 (76-75); 62. (tie) Mark Baldwin 158 (79-79); 64. (tie) Eric Deutsch 159 (79-80); DQ. Shane Sigsbee* (DQ-85).
* – player is competing as an individual; score is not counted towards team total