Nickoson finishes in 3rd with 75; Surge shoot 337 in first spring tournament of season

By Nick Novy/Cincinnati State Sports Information

North Bend, OH -- Cincinnati State freshman Matt Nickoson opened the 2013 spring golf season with a team-low 75(+3) to finish in 3rd place on Saturday in the Mt. St. Joseph Spring Invitational held at Aston Oaks Golf Club.
 
Nickoson, a graduate from Taylor High School, was consistent throughout the afternoon, shooting 37 on the front nine and 38 on the back. A crucial point in his round came on hole #4, a short par-3 guarded by a lateral water hazard. After his tee shot trickled into the hazard, Nickoson managed to save bogey by converting a 15 foot putt. He went on to shoot 2-under par over his next 9 holes.
 
"That was big for his confidence. He avoided the big number after an unfortunate bounce and went on a good stretch of holes from that point on," head coach Scott Webb said.
 
Following Nickoson's 75 for Cincinnati State was Austin Kyle, who fought back to shoot an 81 after a three whole stretch in which he was 5 over par. Ricky Dumont finished with a 90 and Eric Howard shot a 91 to round out the Surge scoring. Cincinnati State, which was the only junior college program in a field featuring twelve NCAA Div. III programs, finished in a tie for 10th place with a team score of 337.
 
As a team, the Surge struggled on Aston Oak's Par 5s, shooting a combined +20 on the afternoon.
 
"There were some encouraging signs today. We think Matt is a special player and he proved it today. Austin showed the ability to bounce back and post a solid score after a bad string of holes," said Webb. "Overall, we have to improve on course management and our performance on par fives. We will work on a few things this week and look to improve on our weak points in next week's tournament in Chillicothe."
 
Cincinnati State will travel to the Ohio University- Chillicothe Invitational next Saturday.
 
 
 
Full results of MSJ Spring Invitational - http://www.golfstat.com/live/final/DM2271.htm
   
For more information on Cincinnati State athletics, please visit - www.cincinnatistate.edu/on-campus/athletics
 
 
 
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