Mercer University
Sea Best Invitational
Cone Leads Bears on Final Day of Sea Best Invitational
1/31/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Senior Josh Cone fired a team-low 75 on the final day of the Sea Best Invitational as the Bears finished the event in ninth place. Tuesday's final round at the Players Stadium Course of the TPC Sawgrass saw Mercer post a team score of 315.
Mercer's 315 came on the heels of Monday's 304 and 306, giving the Bears a tournament total of 925. Mercer's 925 was one stroke behind Florida Gulf Coast for eighth place at the event.
No. 34 Florida captured the team title with a 56-hole score of 884. No. 34 Liberty came in second with a three-round total of 899, while No. 7 North Florida placed third at 902. No. 41 East Carolina finished at 909 and Coastal Carolina rounded out the top five at 911.
"I'm really disappointed in the way we played today," Mercer head coach Steve Bradley said. "We had a chance to move up but it just didn't happen for us. I don't want to overact because it's the first tournament of the spring, but we are going to go back take a look at some things and prepare better as coaching staff."
Sophomore James Beale took home Mercer's top finish, a tie for 25th place with a tournament total of 230. Beale signed for a 79 in Tuesday's final round.
John Gregory Joseph used 80 strokes on the final 18 holes, finishing the tournament one stroke behind Beale and tying for 28th place individually. Sophomore Hans Reimers posted an 81 on Tuesday, bringing his tournament total to 236. He tied for 43rd overall.
Freshman Trey Rule was slotted 46th in the individual leaderboard with a tournament score of 237. His 84 on Tuesday combined with Monday's scores of 76 and 77.
Cone rebounded admirably after using 168 strokes in the first two rounds. His 75 on Tuesday was a 10 stroke improvement on his second round score and placed him in a tie for 56th.
Mercer returns to competitive play at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate on February 20-21. That event is hosted by South Alabama and will be played at the Magnolia Grove Crossings Golf Course in Mobile, Alabama.
