Wetherbee, Eaton Finish in ‘Top 10’ Leading WIU at Murray State

Leathernecks finish tied for third in the 14-team field

Drew Eaton shot a final round 2-under par 69.

MURRAY, Ky. – Jackson Wetherbee and Drew Eaton picked up where they left off last spring, leading Western Illinois to a tie for third place finish at the season-opening Murray State Invitational.

The top two scoring leaders last year, Wetherbee finished 3-under 210 to tie for third individually. Eaton shot a final round 69, improving to a 1-under 212 for the Invitational and tying for seventh place.

"I was pleased with our overall performance and finish. Jackson and Drew provided a great 1-2 punch for us. Jackson's play on day one was amazing. After starting 3-over through the first five holes, he played the next 31 holes at 7-under, including a birdie-birdie-birdle-eagle stretch on holes 14-17 to vault him up the leaderboard," said head coach Mel Blasi. "Drew had a very solid tournament and really had it going in the rain to shoot 69."

WIU's 859 was actually nine strokes better than the team score from last year. Host Murray State won the team title at 850. UT-Martin held onto second place at 856, and thanks to a final round 285, Morehead State moved into a tie with the Leathernecks. Both teams stayed just ahead of Austin Peay (860) to round out the top five.

Kyle Irlbacker tied for 25th at 218 following his final round 73. Sean Miller tied for 40th at 222 and Dennis Reedy was 47th shooting a 75.

Competing as an individual, freshman Trent Snodgrass actually finished third in scoring among the Leathernecks at 215, tying for 18th place.

"Every player contributed and perhaps most pleasing to me was the play of freshman Trent Snodgrass who had a 73-69-73. He had a great tournament for his first time out," said Blasi.

The Leathernecks are off two weeks until the SIU-Edwardsville Derek Dolenc Invitational on September 25-26.

Western Illinois Individuals
T3. Jackson Wetherbee (70-68-72) 210
T7. Drew Eaton (71-72-69) 212
T25. Kyle Irlbacker (74-71-73) 218
T40. Sean Miller (70-78-74) 222
T47. Dennis Reedy (71-78-75) 224
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T18. Trent Snodgrass (73-69-73) 215

Team Standings
1. Murray State (279-286-285) 850
2. UT-Martin (287-281-288) 856
T3. Western Illinois (282-289-288) 859
T3. Morehead State (284-290-279) 859
5. Austin Peay (292-285-283) 860
6. Tennessee State (287-286-292) 865

7. Tennessee Tech (288-293-287) 868
8. John A. Logan College (292-288-294) 874
T9. Evansville (287-294-301) 882
T9. Green Bay (299-296-287) 882
11. Missouri Baptist (297-308-296) 901
12. Southern Indiana (299-306-307) 912
13. Chicago State (316-309-315) 940
14. Bethel University (313-317-337) 967

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Players Mentioned

Drew Eaton: Sophomore; Quincy Notre Dame

Kyle Irlbacker: Sophomore; Cary Grove

Sean Miller: Senior; East

Jackson Wetherbee: Junior; Galesburg

Dennis Reedy: Junior; Byron/Black Hawk College

Trent Snodgrass: Freshman; Byron

Players Mentioned

Drew Eaton
: Sophomore; Quincy Notre Dame

Kyle Irlbacker
: Sophomore; Cary Grove

Sean Miller
: Senior; East

Jackson Wetherbee
: Junior; Galesburg

Dennis Reedy
: Junior; Byron/Black Hawk College

Trent Snodgrass
: Freshman; Byron