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RIPON, Wis. - Carroll is on the hunt for its third consecutive championship and will be one of eight teams playing for a NCAA Tournament berth at the 2013 Midwest Conference (MWC) Men’s Golf Championship. There will be a new individual champion this season and competition will be tight as nine golfers return that finished in the top ten from a year ago including runner-up Cody Neu of Carroll and fifth place finisher Blaine Lynch (Carroll). The championship is held at the Aldeen Golf Club blue tee course – an 18-hole, par 72 layout that measures 6,471 yards. The winner will be crowned the 2013 MWC Champion and will compete as the league representative at the NCAA National Championship located at the Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort in Destin, Fla. May 14-17, 2013.

Carroll aims for its third straight men’s golf title when they tee off at Aldeen Golf Club this weekend. The Pioneers return 2012 runner-up Cody Neu who shot a 226 at last year’s championship that was four shots off the championship pace. During the regular season Neu  averaged 79 shots per around in 12 rounds and shot a low round of 72 in the second round of the Marian Spring Invitational on April 15. Blaine Lynch earned a fifth place finish last season and is right behind Neu with a scoring average of 79.3 in 13 rounds of play while also earning three top-10 finishes. Henry Mulvey is a strong number three on the team with an 80.7 shot per round average and a low round of 74. As a team Carroll ranks third in the league with 320.4 shots per round in 13 rounds.

Grinnell has finished fifth in the final standings in the past three championships and aims for its first school championship since 1973. Ian Luby leads the Pioneers with a scoring average of 82.4 and shot a low round of 74 in the second round of the Scot-Fire Invitational on April 27. Chris Marsho is second on the team with an average of 86 while both he and Max Herzberg have shot low rounds of 79. At the championship Grinnell looks to improve its scoring average as they shot just over 341 shots per round during the regular season. At last season’s championship Grinnell recorded scores of 311, 322, and 326 in its fifth place finish. 

The Blueboys have been on the golf course more than any other team this season and hopes that will translate into the school’s first championship since the 1987 season. Christian Walker headlines the roster with a team-low average of 83.2 shots per round and had six top-10 finishes that included a win in at the Illinois Col. Invitational on April 28. Walker shot a low round of 71 while four other golfers on the Blueboys team have low rounds under 80.Wilson Neill finished second on the team with a scoring average of 84.3 and a low round of 77 while Koert Brown averages 86.8 shots with four top ten finishes.

With the most championships in MWC history Knox looks to add to the total this year as they have not won the Men’s Golf Championship since the 2008 season. The Prairie Fire have to replace 2012 individual champion Bobby Stuebi who led the team to a fourth place finish last season. This year Knox is averaging just over 368.7 shots per round and is led by James Fenner with an average of 80.4 shots. Fenner earned a sixth place finish last year with a three day total of 235 and owns the teams low round when he shot a 73 at the Scot-Fire Invitational on April 27. Ben Schlotter has a low round of 83 and holds an average of 91.4 to compliment Fenner.

Lawrence finished seventh last season but finished the regular season with the fourth-best scoring average and two of the top golfers in the league heading into the 2013 championship. In nine rounds of golf, the Vikings averaged 321.9 shots per round and were led by Rudi Pino. He led the MWC with a 75.3 shot average that included a first-round 68 at the Marian Spring Invitational on April 14. Pino notched three top-five performances and finished in the top ten in each of the five events in which he participated. Anton Olsson is right behind Pino with a scoring average of 77 (second in MWC), shooting 74 twice with the most recent coming in the second round of the Marian Spring Invitational. Michael Vaubel gives the Vikings a strong trio with a scoring average of 83.7 and a low round of 77 at the Marian Spring Invitational.

In 2012 Monmouth finished just 14 shots back of the school’s first championship since 2010 and this season they enter with the conference’s lowest scoring average to make another championship run. In 15 rounds the Fighting Scots averaged 314.7 shots while earning six top three finishes including wins at the Scot-Fire-Viking Classic in August and the Blueboy Invitational on April 20-21. Britt Bothast earned a top ten medal last season and finished the regular season third in the league with a scoring average of 77.6. Bothast earned five top ten finishes in nine events this year and shot a low round of 71 in the first round of the Blueboy Invitational and in the second round of the Scot-Fire Invitational. Cory Fell hopes to improve his sixth place finish from 2012 and averaged 80.1 shots with a low round of 74 while Brandon Kemerling averages 79.2 shots and had a low round of 73.

Ripon earned an eighth place finish at last year’s championship and aim to break back into the top half of the field for the first time since 2008 when they were one of three teams that tied for fourth place. Meulemans averaged 87 shots per round which led the Red Hawks during the regular season while Travis Bitters show a low round of 88 in two rounds this season and also holds the second lowest scoring average on the team (90).

St. Norbert finished in a tie with Monmouth in 2012 at 14 shots back and looks for the school’s first championship. The Green Knights averaged 320.2 shots per round that ranks second in the league and their season is highlighted by a first place finish at the Benedictine Fall Invitational where they beat out 19 other teams with a score of 307. Joe Martin held an average of 78.7 shots per round that included a top five finish at the UW-Green Bay Shootout in the fall. St. Norbert returns four golfers that finished in the top ten last season highlighted by sixth place finisher Brandon Gries. This season Gries averaged 80.7 shots in six rounds including shooting a season low 79 in the second round of the Marian Spring Invitational on April 15. Evan Mass finished ninth and enters the championship with an 82.5 shot average while Joe Martin (78.7 shot average) and Nic Vrubley (78.6 shot average) both tied for tenth last season and round out a formidable lineup for the Green Knights.

To order championship apparel please visit the [MWC online store] and to view all the information on the MWC Men’s Golf Championship please [click this link] to go to the championship page.