Final-round heroics lift Averett to Division III title

By STEVE WILLIAMS

An 83-minute rain delay in the final round of the NCAA Division III national championship tournament wasn’t a time for discussion for coach Jim Gourlay and members of Averett University golf team. It was a time to keep their minds on the task at hand.

“We kept our focus during that rain delay,” Gourlay said as he recounted Averett’s first-ever national championship in any sport. “We didn’t even talk about our scores.”

The thunderstorm passed and the Cougars stormed past the competition.

When the horn blew to resume play, Bret Efird’s next shot was a 70-foot chip-in for birdie on the par-3 ninth hole and Tony Karjalainen’s was a long birdie putt at the eighth.

“I was standing on the eighth green with Toni and I could see where Bret was on the ninth about 60 yards away,” Gourlay said. “Both balls went in the hole simultaneously.”

That dynamic duo of shots was part of a sizzling final round that lifted the Cougars to a come-from-behind victory in the 72-hole event. Averett was nine shots behind Wesley College when the final round began, but fired a 285 and won by five, 1175-1180.

“Every tournament that we’ve won, we’ve come from behind, so it wasn’t uncharted territory for us,” Gourlay said. “We felt very confident that we’d be able to overcome the deficit if we played as a team.”

Averett did just that with an incredible show of balance.

No Cougar shot over 73 on the par-71 course at Dornoch Golf Club in Delaware, Ohio. Jeff Johnston paced Averett with a 1-under-par 70, Craig Hosie posted a 71, Janne Mommo and Karjalainen each carded 72s and Efird notched a 73.

Mommo had a second reason to celebrate. The three-time All-American won the individual championship with a 281 total, three better at Nathan Proshek of St. John’s. He opened with a 75 but fired 65-69 to move on top and then sealed the deal with the 72.

Karjalainen was third, seven shots off the pace. He shot 71-73-72-72.

Trailing going into the final round, the Cougars decided to employ a different strategy to help them maintain their focus.

“Typically, I’ll be at a hole and watch all the players come through,” said Gourlay. “The last round, we didn’t do it that way. I didn’t want to know how anyone was doing and that way I didn’t let the others know what they were doing. I said, ‘you guys worry about what you are doing, and we’ll tally up the scores at the end of the day and see how we stand.’”

While Mommo and Karjalainen, both natives of Finland, have been mainstays during the Cougars’ previous two trips to the nationals (ninth in 2001 and 12th in 2002), it was the play of the supporting cast that provided the vital scores.

“The big surprise was the three boys that played three, four and five,” Gourlay said. “They didn’t play particularly well the first three days, but the last day they just played amazing. We weren’t going to win with just Janne and Toni playing well, we were going to win with everybody contributing.”

Averett shot 303, 291, 296 and 295 during the four days while Wesley set the early pace with 292 and followed with 302, 287 and 299.

Gourlay credited contributing coach Bobby Mitchell, the former PGA Tour star who lives in Danville, will being a major factor in the championship.

Mitchell spends several months every year teaching golf in Finland and that’s where he first met Mommo.

“Janne learned to play golf through Bobby,” Gourlay said. “Bobby being from Danville is a comfortable fit. Bobby works with us some and he’s always visible when he’s in town.”

The two Fins have graduated along with Efird, the only Virginian in the starting five, and Johnston, who arrived in Danville from Ohio.

Hosie, a sophomore from Canada, will be the backbone of the team next year as the only returning starter.

A couple of other players also return and Gourlay has put together a strong recruiting class. One of potential newcomers is from Finland and Gourlay says he plays on the same level as Mommo and Karjalainen.

Rebuilding isn’t done overnight, just ask Guilford coach Jack Jensen and Greensboro coach Robert Linville.

Greensboro, which won the national title in 2000, placed 12th with 1207; and Guilford, the defending national champion, settled for 17th with 1223.

Brandon White, a junior, led Greensboro with a 15th-place finish, shooting 74-77-69-75 – 295. Jonathan Dudley, also a junior, tied for 43rd at 303 (78-74-73-78) and freshman Rocky Manning tied for 48th at 304 (81-76-74-73).

Freshman Chris Lowman led Guilford with a tie for 31st at 300 (78-75-71-76) and junior Dave Patterson tied for 43rd at 303 (73-75-73-82).

Methodist, which entered the tournament with a number one ranking, was seeking its 10th national championship and first since 1999. But the Monarchs settled for fifth despite a superb showing from sophomore Adam Horton, who tied for fourth at 289 (73-71-72-73).

Soph Rich Bamber shared 34th place at 301 (80-74-71-76), junior James Stewart tied for 43rd with 303 (76-77-74-76), sophomore Mike Townsend tied for 48th at 304 (82-74-70-78) and lone senior Greg Hanna shared 54th at 305 (81-80-73-71).

There were 23 teams and 120 individuals in the tournament.