GPAC Conference Championship

• PREVIEW
• RECAP/RESULTS

The Event... The Northwestern College men's golf team is set to begin competing at the GPAC Conference Championships hosted by Briar Cliff University and played at the Green Valley Golf Course in Sioux City, Iowa. 11 teams from the GPAC will begin teeing off around 9:00 am with Northwestern playing the final pairings of the day at around 10:15 am.

Last Year... The Red Raiders finished in seventh place last season at the GPAC Men's Championship held at the Elmwood Golf Club in Sioux Falls, S.D.. The Raiders totaled a 625, just one shot in back of sixth place Hastings and from qualifying for the NAIA Region III tournament. In eighth place after day one with a 319, the Raiders shot a 306 on day two, the third best score recorded for the day. NWC, however, just fell one shot short and ended their season at the GPAC meet.

Four-time defending champion Nebraska Wesleyan won the championships with a 584, followed by Midland Lutheran with a 588. USF (618), Dordt (620), Morningside (622) and Hastings (624) also moved on to the regional tournament.

NWC was led by sophomore Justin Pannkuk who carded a 153 (78-75) and finished in a tie for 16th place. Luke Vermeer finished in a tie for 20th place with a 156 (80-76). Defending champion and 2006 GPAC Player-of-the-Year Dan Laaveg and David Klyn each shot a 158 and finished in a tie for 26th place. The final NWC golfer, Nate Summers, carded a 163.

Last Time Out... The Northwestern College men's golf team wrapped up regular season play with a fourth place finish out of 17 teams at the two-day Buena Vista Invitational this past weekend. The Red Raiders shot a 324 on day one and a season best 298 on day two for a two-day total of 622. Central College won the team title with a 586 followed by Nebraska Wesleyan (598) and Iowa Lakes CC (616). The event took place at the Lake Creek Country Club on Saturday and the Spencer Golf and Country Club on Friday.

Sophomore Luke Vermeer closed out the regular season with a three-over 147 and placed fifth out 88 golfers. Vermeer carded the best round of the meet with a second-round 69 and finished in the top-10 for the 11th time this season. Justin Pannkuk placed 22nd with a 154. The junior shot an even-par 72 on day two after an opening round 82. Kyle McGranahan finished tied for 28th with a 157 and Nathan Summers shot a 164. Overall medalist honors went to Joel Winters (Central) who shot a one-over 145.

Red Raider Notes... Luke Vermeer has been the Red Raiders top golfer all season long and carries a 74 average into today's championship. He has finished in the top 10 in all 11 meets this season. Justin Pannkuk averages 78.7 and has three top 10 finishes this season. Nate Summers averages an 81 and has one top-10 finish. Kyle McGranahan (83.3) will also compete along with either Cole Spree (87) or Jamie Jeltema (84.43).

Next up... The top-five finishers at the conference championship (Nebraska Wesleyan is NCAA Division III) will advance to the NAIA Region III Championships on April 28 and 29 at Elmwood Country Club in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Regional champion advances to the NAIA National Meet.

Official GPAC Release