April 26, 2015
NEWBURGH Ind. - The Penn State men's golf team finished tied-for-third overall in the Big Ten Championship Sunday after posting a four-round score of 1181 (295-300-284-302) at Victoria National.
The Nittany Lions jumped to the top three in a 14-team field behind senior Xander McDonald-Smith (Rockaway Park, N.Y.), who carded a 294 and earned a tied-for-13th finish. McDonald-Smith rose seven places on the final day of play with 73 strokes on the last 18 holes.
Fellow senior Jens Talbert (Little Rock, Ark.) accumulated 297 strokes through 72 holes and placed 22nd on the leaderboard. Freshman Cole Miller (New Tripoli, Pa.) tallied a 301 and a tied-for-32nd finish in his conference tournament debut.
Junior JD Dornes (Lancaster, Pa.) and sophomore Christian Elliott shot a pair of 305's to round out the Penn State lineup.
Illinois claimed the 2015 Big Ten Championship crown after notching a 14-under 1138 team score. Illinois' Nick Hardy and Iowa's Carson Schaake shared the individual Big Ten title, shooting a four-under par score of 284.
The Big Ten Network will provide tape-delayed coverage of the Big Ten Men's Golf Championships on Wednesday, May 13 at 7 p.m. ET. The NCAA Men's Golf Championships selection show will air on the Golf Channel on Monday, May 4.