Trojans place 6th at Iowa Central Fall Kickoff

NIACC's Bennett Berger tees off Monday at the Iowa Central Fall Kickoff at the Fort Dodge Country Club.

September 10, 2024

Berger leads Trojans with 74
Willms next in line with 77
Trojans return to action Friday at Battle of Waterloo

FORT DODGE - The NIACC men's golf team placed sixth on Monday at the Iowa Cetnral Fall Kickoff at the Fort Dodge Country Club.

The Trojans, who were playing in their first tournament of the fall, shot a 316. Iowa Lakes won the 13-team invitational with a 303 and host Iowa Central was second with a 306.

"It was not the team score we were hoping for (Monday)," NIACC coach Chris Frenz said, "but the course played pretty tough all day as the winds came up and the greens were fast.

"We're definitely disappointed, but the attitudes of all the guys was fantastic, which is very encouraging. It just wasn't our day."

NIACC was led by sophomore Bennett Berger, who tied for fourth in the indiviual medalist competition with a 74. Krish Gupta, who was playing for the Grand View B team, was the individual medalist with a 71.

"It's great to have Bennett Berger back in North Iowa and on the team," Frenz said. "He's a great leader and I know he was frustrated on his score, but he'll bounce back quickly."

Also for the Trojans, freshman Ashtin Willms shot 77, which was tied for 12th, sophomore Tommy Birdsell shot 82, freshman Gavin Anderson shot 83 and freshman Garrett Ham shot 84.

"Ashtin Willims has been very impressive early this season," Frenz said, "and his efforts are being rewarded.

"I'm not worried about the rest of the guys. We know we're better than we played (Monday). We'll learn from (Monday) and get better."

The NIACC B team placed 12th with a 341. Freshman Drew DeGabriele shot 81, freshman Sam Van Brocklin shot 85, Brady Nygren shot 86, Brody Frayne shot 89 and Ian Roske shot 90.

NIACC returns to action Friday and Saturday at the Battle of Waterloo.

Team standings - Iowa Lakes 303, Iowa Central 306, Southwestern 312, Iowa Central B 312, Southeast CC (Neb.) 314, NIACC 316, Grand View B 318, DMACC 319, Simpson College B 323, Iowa Central C 329, North Platte CC 331, NIACC B 341, Simpson College A 343.