Men's Golf Spring Preview

SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist men's golf begins their spring schedule Monday after entering five tournaments in the fall. The Bison compiled three top-five finishes as a team in the fall and finished seventh at the NCCAA National Championship in October.
 
OBU will compete in four tournaments this spring, beginning at the TMU Spring Invitational and wrapping up at the Great American Conference Championship in April.
 
Head coach Drew Posada enters his second semester at the helm of his alma mater after taking the reins last summer, following the exhaustion of his eligibility as a player on Bison Hill.
 
"Once we get started we're going to have quite a few tournaments in a row, so they're going to have to be ready to play, but I'm very excited with how they played last semester and they improved as the semester went along," said Posada. "I'm looking forward to seeing them improve and seeing them play better this semester as well."
 
A youthful squad was tested in the fall and looks to continue their growth this spring. Of the eight players on the roster, the Bison boast five underclassmen and just one senior, which led to a starting five that evolved throughout the semester.
 
"Our top five will change a little bit this semester. Last semester it kind of fluctuated at the four and five spot, but at the end of the semester we had a solid five that we felt good about whenever we played," remarked Posada.
 
The first-year head coach pointed to the NCCAA National Championship in Panama City Beach, Florida, as a positive challenge for the young team.
 
"We didn't play our best [at the national championship], but what I saw was a lot of our guys willing to grind and willing to try to fight through not playing as well as they would like, and I think it was a really big learning experience for most of the young guys that played in it," said Posada.
 
Kyle Perdew anchors the team as the lone senior on the squad. He posted two top-five finishes in the fall and never finished outside the top-25 in all five tournaments.
 
"Kyle's our rock, I like to call him. He is always consistent, he's always there, and he's always going to put his all into playing for us and he's always going to turn in a good number. No matter how he looks to be or how his day is going, he's always going to try to grind out a good number," commented Posada.
 
Sophomore Hudson Hoover wrapped up the fall season with two straight top-five finishes. He was named NCCAA All-America after leading the Bison with a fourth place finish at the NCCAA National Championship.
 
"Hudson, he really came out and played well this semester. He played in every tournament and he finished well at our host tournament we had [in Shawnee] and he also played well at nationals," said Posada. "I think he's rounding into a really good player and I'm looking forward to seeing how good he can be."
 
Junior Luke Garner enters his first spring for the Bison after transferring to OBU from Eastern Arizona College. Garner competed in all five tournaments in the fall, and placed in the top-10 twice.
 
"From day one, he worked hard, he was a good kid. I could see that he had a lot of game; he played well. He didn't start out the semester in the five, but as the semester went on he really played well and worked hard." Posada continued, "He's going to be a good player for this year and next year. He's going to be a good contributor."
 
Freshmen Mason Nutt and Lucas Coapman were fixtures in the top five during their first semester of collegiate golf. Nutt had three top-25 finishes, including a top-10 finish at the GAC Preview in September. Coapman won the GAC Preview in just his second start and registered two top-10 finishes for the Bison.
 
"Two freshmen in particular, Mason Nutt and Lucas Coapman, both of them played well for us. They played in the five all semester long, in every tournament, so I think that's a lot to be said for two freshman playing in every tournament," said Posada.
 
Sophomore Shane Black played in three tournaments during the fall.
 
"Shane started out the semester for us in the five. He had kind of a rough go at the beginning of the semester, but I was really proud of the way he handled himself and the way that he continued to work hard and press on through those hard situations," remarked Posada.
 
Shawnee native Ryan Epperly is a freshman that appeared in three tournaments in his first semester at OBU.
 
"He played well for us last semester. He didn't play his best, but from what I can see he works hard and I think that as his years at OBU go along, he probably will be a really good contributor to the team."
 
A new player looks to make an immediate impact in his debut this spring. Junior Dalton Rhoden is a transfer from the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith that became eligible after the fall season.
 
"Whenever we start playing, practicing and qualifying, and throw [Dalton] into the mix I think that he will definitely stir up some competition. I honestly think that he will end up on the five, so there's going to be some jostling and people fighting for their own spot, because I think he's going to probably come in and play for us right away," said Posada.
 
Tournaments filled with tough competition will be the norm for OBU this semester, starting at the TMU Spring Invitational, played in Santa Clarita, California, at Robinson Ranch Golf Club.
 
"That's going to be a good test against good competition," said Posada. "Right off the bat that's going to be a really good test, because the golf course is tough and the competition is going to be really tough. There's going to be a lot of Division II schools there, and even some Division I schools."
 
Another stacked field awaits the Bison at the DBU Patriot Classic, hosted by Dallas Baptist at Hackberry Creek Country Club in Irving, Texas.
 
"We're going to see a lot of our future competition in Division II with teams like Dallas Baptist, Rogers State, teams that are always going to be there and playing well," said Posada.
 
"There's also going to be good teams that we used to play against in the NAIA, like Oklahoma City, Texas Wesleyan, and Wayland Baptist. There's going to be a lot of quality competition that we'll be playing all semester long."
 
Due to Oklahoma Baptist's provisional status in NCAA Division II, the Bison are unable to compete in NCAA postseason play. OBU is currently in year three of the three-year transition process from the NAIA.
 
After hosting the OBU Spring Invite at Shawnee Country Club, the Bison will wrap up their season at the conference championship in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Oklahoma Baptist competes in the Great American Conference
 
"I think the GAC is really a good conference to be in. It's really tough, it's really competitive, but that being said I think we stand as probably one of the top-two or three teams in the conference," said Posada.
 
OBU finished runner-up at the GAC Preview in the fall, six strokes behind Southern Nazarene.
 
"I think we could probably be a top-two or three team, if not a top-one or two team in the conference."