Vanderbilt Men’s Golf looked to bounce back from its disappointing ninth-place finish at the Cabo Collegiate while playing at the annual Valspar Collegiate Invitational from March 24-25. Facing a field loaded with NCAA Championship contenders, the Commodores had a good — but not great — weekend, finishing ninth out of 17 teams.
Vanderbilt’s performance was paced by junior Wells Williams, who finished 16th overall at 5-under 208. He was joined by Jackson Van Paris, John Broderick, Chase Nevins and Ryan Downes.
In the first round, Vanderbilt posted a 10-under 274. The All-American Van Paris led the way with an excellent 5-under 66. Williams also thrived with a 4-under 67. Nevins struggled, posting a score of 10-over 81. Overall, it was a strong opening round for the Commodores, who finished in second place.
In the second round, which also took place on Day One, the Commodores took a major step back, carding a 2-over 286. Nevins improved by nine shots, shooting a 1-over 72, but the rest of the team struggled — Williams shot an even 71 and Van Paris notched a score of 1-over 72. Downes completed the middling day with an even 71.
In the final round, Vanderbilt marginally rebounded by scoring a 1-under 283. Williams led the way with a 1-under 70 while Downes took the rear with a 2-over 73. Broderick, Nevins and Van Paris all shot an even 71. Williams finished in a tie for 16th and Van Paris finished tied for 23rd, but all in all, it was a disappointing weekend for a Vanderbilt team that entered the invitational with higher hopes.
Despite the middling finish, head coach Scott Limbaugh is not worried about his team going forward. The Commodores have one regular season matchup left — the annual Mason Rudolph Championship — which they will host.
“Everything this team wants is still in front of us, and that’s exciting,” Limbaugh said. “We have a great field coming to town, and we have two outstanding seniors that I hope everyone will come out to support.”
Vanderbilt will look to finish the regular season strong on senior day in the Mason Rudolph Championship on April 4-6 at the Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tennessee.
