The ACU golf team wrapped up the Southland Conference tournament on Wednesday in McKinney with a win for Sam Houston State. Junior Corbin Renner shot a third-round 72 to finish in third. The rest of the team combined for a 316 and took eighth place.
Senior Trey Sullivan shot a 78 in his last round as a Wildcat and tied for 16th individually. Freshman Kyle Karnei’s 84 was good enough for the third slot on the team. Kaden Walters finished the tournament with an 87, and Luke Carpenter had his best round of the week with an 82.
Zach Cabra led Sam Houston State to the Southland victory, while also stealing away the individual title with a 72. Pep Angles from Central Arkansas had led the tournament the two previous days, but things fell apart for him on Wednesday at the bitter end. He bogeyed 17 and double bogeyed 18 to lose to Cabra by a single stroke.
Renner missed out on the first spot by four strokes, but his consistency over the three-day period was remarkable nonetheless. He fired a 71 on Monday, a 71 on Tuesday and capped it off with a 72 on Wednesday. He made a run on the front nine on Wednesday, shooting a 31. He even claimed a tie for the lead for a few holes. While his run eventually came to an end, his month of April was still impressive. Renner finished the spring season with three top-10 finishes.
The ACU team will say goodbye to two seniors following the conference tournament; the Wildcats will lose Ian Evans and Sullivan next year.
Sullivan’s last round came exactly a year following spinal fusion surgery. Despite the operation, he did not miss a single tournament all year and was consistently competitive behind Renner.
“Trey was not only a great teammate but an outstanding guy,” Renner said. “We will, for sure, miss his personality.”
Fans saw a glimpse of the future at conference through the play of Karnei. The true freshman stepped up big in the second half of the spring season, making the last two tournaments and filling the third slot.
“This entire week was an incredible learning experience for me,” Karnei said. “It is something I can take with me the next three years. Watching Corbin and Trey handle themselves this season has been invaluable.”
