Bear Golfers Picked for Sixth at Valley Tournament

MVC Championship Central
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The Missouri State men's golf team has been picked to finish sixth at the 2021 Missouri Valley Conference Championship next week in suburban Chicago. The Bears and the league's eight other teams will tee it up Monday and Tuesday (Apr. 26-27) at Flossmoor Country Club in Flossmoor, Ill.

In a pre-tournament vote of the conference coaches, Illinois State was the unanimous favorite to win, garnering all nine first-place votes and 81 total points. Southern Illinois was a strong second-place pick with 66 points. Valparaiso was tabbed for third with 53 points and Drake fourth with 48, just ahead of Loyola (47) and the Bears (43). Northern Iowa was seventh (26), followed by Evansville (23) and Bradley (18).

The tournament wasn't held a year ago due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so SIU is the defending champion, having won in 2019 at the Club at Porto Cima at Lake of the Ozarks. MSU posted a third-place finish, its best showing since finishing second in 2012. The Bears won their only MVC title in 1993.

The Bears are led by sophomore Max Kreikemeier, who leads the team with a 73.6 scoring average. He's led the Bears in five of their nine tournaments and comes into the championship with top-10 finishes in two of the last three tournaments and a tie for 14th in the other. Sophomore Carter Lee is enjoying his best collegiate semester, averaging 74.5 in 16 spring rounds to rank second on the team. The same can be said for JP Lavalle, who ranks third with a 75.0 mark, and has finished second or tied for first on the team in the last three tournaments.

Senior Crimson Callahan has played in every tournament and averaged 75.15 to rank fourth for the Bears. He's led the team in three tournaments, most recently the Colin Montgomerie Invitational, where he tied for 12th. Freshman Eric Schuessler will round out the MSU five, sporting a 77.0 scoring average in 14 rounds.

Teams will start Monday's 36-hole day with an 9 a.m. shotgun start at the par 72, 7020-yard course, while Tuesday's final round will commence at 8:30 a.m. with tee times off both nines.

Bear Golfers Picked for Sixth at Valley Tournament

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Players Mentioned

Crimson Callahan

Max Kreikemeier

JP Lavalle

Carter Lee

Eric Schuessler

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