Missouri State has been picked to finish fourth at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Men's Golf Championship next week in a poll of the league's coaches. The Bears and their Valley rivals will tee it up at 8 a.m. Monday and Tuesday (Apr. 21-22) at the Davenport (Iowa) Country Club, with 36 holes contested the first day and the final 18 on Tuesday.
Wichita State has been installed as the overwhelming favorite, gathering eight of nine first-place votes and 80 total points. The Shockers have won six tournament titles this season and have finished first or second at the tournament in each of the past 11 seasons. Defending champion Illinois State was tabbed for second with one first-place vote and 71 points. UNI is third with 59 points, followed by the Bears with 54 and Southern Illinois with 43. Rounding out the poll are Drake (36), Evansville (27), Creighton (26) and Bradley (9).
The Bears finished sixth at the tournament a year ago, but lost only one senior off that squad. They are led by sophomore Jay McBride, who leads the team and ranks 13th in the MVC with a 74.9 scoring average. Senior Damaso Carrera is second for the Bears at 75.8. Freshman Jack Courington is ranked 10th in the league in the Golfstat rankings and is 30th in scoring average at 76.1.
