Charleston wins Colleton River event in memory of late teammate

The letters “JM” are prominent on pretty much everything around the College of Charleston golf program this spring — shirts, hats, windbreakers, even down to the balls they tee up with.

They’re the initials of teammate Jackson Moore, who died Thanksgiving weekend a one-car accident near his home in Isle of Palms.

“We’ve put his initials on everything,” coach Mark McEntire said Tuesday after the Cougars held off challenges from Memphis and North Texas to win the Colleton River Collegiate. Victory came in their second tournament since Moore’s death.

“He was roommates with four or five guys that traveled here this week,” McEntire continued. “I know they wanted to win for him. The guys have pretty much dedicated everything they’re doing now to him.”

Moore, a senior, died Nov. 29 after his vehicle ran off a residential street and struck a tree near his family’s home. He was one of the state’s top juniors while attending Wando High.

The Cougars took a nine-shot lead into the final round, but made only six birdies as a team as the gap narrowed down the back nine at Colleton River’s Dye course.

But Parker Derby birdied two of his last four holes to finish with an even-par 72, while Philip Oweida (72) and William Rainey (74) played their last six holes in no worse than 1-over.

That left Charleston at 27-over par, two shots ahead of Memphis, with host Michigan State another two behind as North Texas faded to fourth.

“It’s a very hard golf course, tough conditions,” McEntire said. “We just got off to a little bit of a rough start on the second day, and they just hung in there.”

Thomas Perrot of Memphis captured individual honors, carding a 74 to finish one shots ahead of Xavier’s Jose Montano (73). Oweida was another shot back, as Charleston’s trio claimed three of the top 11 spots.

USCB’s Knoetsch wins in Georgia: Franzi Knoetsch claimed her second collegiate victory, surviving a bogey/bogey finish to emerge with a one-shot triumph at the Callaway Women’s Collegiate at Callaway Gardens in Georgia.

Knoetsch carded a 3-over-par 74 Tuesday, using birdies at Nos. 12 and 14 to create enough cushion to stay ahead of Kaitlyn Riley of Cumberlands (72). It was Knoetsch’s first victory in a multi-round event, having won an 18-hole tournament last year at Old South.

The Sand Sharks placed third as a team, with Rhodes College taking the victory.

Coastal Georgia wins Sand Shark: The Mariners nearly turned in the top score for a third consecutive round, coasting to a 27-shot romp over USC Beaufort at Oldfield Golf Club.

The Sand Sharks used a 293 final round to move into second, but still could make up only one stroke on Coastal Georgia.

Stone Cowie of Thomas University took individual honors after a closing 72, one shot ahead of Coastal Georgia’s Trevor Smith. USCB’s Jud Milam fired a 67 that was four shots better than anyone else, finishing three shots back in fourth place.

Guilford men go 1-2 at Dataw Island: Guilford’s Ty Palmer held off teammate Justin Perdue by a stroke for individual honors at the TaylorMade-adidas Intercollegiate, as the Quakers overcame a six-shot deficit on the final day to beat Wittenberg by four.

Perdue’s closing eagle on Dataw Island’s Cotton Dike layout completed a 1-under-par 71 and put a little pressure on Palmer, who held steady with three pars to complete his 73.

Wittenberg women pull away at Dataw: Wittenberg’s Macy Hubbard and Jane Hopkinson-Wood also went 1-2 in the individual competition as the Tigers pulled away from Bridgewater (Va.) for a 17-stroke romp.

The teams had been tied heading into the final day at Dataw Island’s Morgan River course, but Wittenberg got four scores of 76 or better while no Bridgewater player could do better than 78.

Mount Olive wins at Hilton Head Lakes: The Trojans followed up a school 18-hole scoring record with the 36-hole mark on Tuesday, holding off Armstrong State by two at the Hilton Head Lakes Invitational.

Mount Olive finished with a team total of 598, shattering the program’s previous record by 23 strokes. Individual honors went to the Trojans’ Paula Guridi, who finished at 2-under 142.

This story was originally published March 8, 2016 at 8:44 PM with the headline "Charleston wins Colleton River event in memory of late teammate."