By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
MIMS, Fla. – It was a largely successful day on the links for the Tennessee Tech men's golf team, as the Golden Eagles opened up the 2022-23 spring campaign in undefeated style on day one of the Carpenter-Chaney Classic, the team's match-play event for the season.
Competing at Indian River Preserve Golf Club, the purple and gold claimed victory in each of its first two matches of the tournament without dropping a single match-up on the day. Tech opened the day with an impressive 6-0-0 showing against Ohio Valley Conference rival Eastern Illinois.
Senior Bryce Beeler dominated in his first match of the day, leading by as many as five holes before taking the decision 4&3 (leading by four with three holes to play). Junior Mark McDearman enjoyed a lofty win of his own, fighting back and forth over the front nine before pulling away on the back nine for a 4&3 victory.
Veteran Chance Taylor took the lead on his first hole of the day and led for all but hole the rest of the way, securing a 3&2 win. Also delivering a 3&2 victory was freshman Anders Larson, jumping into the lead after the third hole and never looking back. He built as large as a five-hold advantage before finishing things off late.
Fellow rookie Haden Maxwell battled for his first match-play win of his Tech career, winning the 16th and 17th holes after EIU squared things on the 15th. He claimed one of two 2&1 victories for the Golden Eagles, with Jackson Skeen taking the other. The sophomore fought back from a one-hole deficit with five to play, quickly turning the tide and winning three of the next four.
The Golden Eagles showed their fighting chops in the second match-up of the day, taking down Bellarmine with a 3-0-3 victory.
Maxwell picked up a tie with his Bellarmine counterpart, rallying from two down with three holes to play behind a pair of pars that halved the match. Skeen squared things up in his match-up, fighting back from a three-hole deficit with victories in three of the final four holes. McDearman picked up the third draw of the round for Tech.
Beeler captured a key win for the Tech squad, despite trailing for the first 13 holes and facing as much as a three-hole deficit. The veteran tied things up on the 14th and took the lead on the 15th before matching his opponent the rest of the way for a 1UP victory.
Larson mostly controlled his match-up, trailing just once after the first hole and maintaining either a tie or one-hole lead until the 15th. He eventually claimed a 2&1 victory.
Rounding out the effort, Taylor made the end of his match-up count in a very evenly-matched showdown. The two sides fought back and forth until the Tech senior pulled away down the stretch. Taylor took a one-hole advantage after the 16th hole and secured a 2&1 win with another victory on the 17th.
The purple and gold are slated to finish off the third and final round of action at the Carpenter-Chaney Classic with a tilt against OVC foe UT Martin, a joint host of the event with Morehead State. It will mark the third match-play meeting between the Golden Eagles and Skyhawks in the last two seasons, with UT Martin claiming each match-up last season. Tee times are slated to begin for Tech at 9:18 a.m. CT.
Match Play Results
Round #1: Tennessee Tech 6, Eastern Illinois 0
Bryce Beeler (TTU) def. Trey Oswald (EIU), 4&3
Chance Taylor (TTU) def. Preston Smith (EIU), 3&2
Haden Maxwell (TTU) def. Keegan Gowin (EIU), 2&1
Jackson Skeen (TTU) def. Pierce Allord (EIU), 2&1
Anders Larson (TTU) def. Ben Lanman (EIU), 3&2
Mark McDearman (TTU) def. Grant Mascal (EIU), 4&3
Round #2: Tennessee Tech 4.5, Bellarmine 1.5
Haden Maxwell (TTU), Luke Bischoff (BU), HALVED
Bryce Beeler (TTU) def. Jensen Klondike (BU), 1UP
Mark McDearman (TTU), Kannon Tucker (BU), HALVED
Anders Larson (TTU) def. Ballard Harris (BU), 2&1
Chance Taylor (TTU) def. Davis Billows (BU), 2&1
Jackson Skeen (TTU), Frankie Morgan (BU), HALVED
File photo by Emily Armstrong
