Flashes claim 12-stroke win over local opponents, eye third MAC Championship in four years next week

Kent State freshman Jean-Phillipe Paiement takes a tee shot at the WIndmill Lakes Golf Club in Ravenna Saturday. Brian Marks | Daily Kent Stater

Credit: Ron Soltys

Once was nice for the Kent State men’s golf team, but twice is even better.

The Flashes won their second consecutive tournament with a 12-shot victory Saturday at the FirstEnergy Intercollegiate at Windmill Lakes Golf Club in Ravenna.

“It was great to continue our winning ways and back up last week’s performance with another victory,” coach Herb Page said in a press release. “Conditions started getting tough out there in the afternoon with the high winds, but I’m proud of the way our guys hung in there and made difficult shots.”

The Flashes shot 12-over-par to finish first in a 12-team field made up mostly of Mid-American Conference teams.

In last weekend’s Boilermaker Invitational, the Flashes had to come back from a six-stroke deficit entering the final round to win the tournament. That wasn’t the case this weekend, as they led by nine shots after the first round.

Individually, freshmen Brett Cairns and John Hahn tied for second place at even par, six shots behind winner Jacob Scott of Cleveland State.

It was Hahn’s third straight top-10 finish. He finished tied for second at the Boilermaker Invitational last weekend and tied for 10th at the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate on April 12-13.

The Flashes have now finished in the top five of their past four tournaments after finishing 13th in their first tournament of the spring.

“I think we’re getting better, and (I) look forward to working on it,” Page said after the Boilermaker Invitational. “It’s a fleeting game. You’re good one week and the next week it disappears.

“We’re going to keep working hard so we keep our confidence up and keep this run going. That’s just done through hard work and dedication, and (the players have) been doing that.”

Next up for the Flashes is the MAC Championship next weekend at Longaberger Golf Club in Nashport. The team will look for its third conference title in the past four years; the Flashes finished third last season.

“We’re going back to work on Monday and (trying to) fine-tune our short game,” Page said. “It’ll be nice going to practice all week with two straight wins under our belt.”

Contact sports reporter Doug Gulasy at [email protected].