Golf Teams Head To Butler Fall Invitational
    Vikings compete in Horizon League-laden fields.
    The golf teams are competing at Butler this week.

    The golf teams are competing at Butler this week.
    Contact: Alan Ashby

    Sept. 20, 2004

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    Upcoming Men's Event
    September 20-21: Butler Fall Invitational
    Course/Location/Holes: Eagle Creek Golf Club (Sycamore)/Indianapolis, Ind./54
    Yards/Par: 6,646/71
    Teams: 14 -- Butler, Cincinnati, Cleveland State, Eastern Illinois, IPFW, IUPUI, Indianapolis, Loyola, Morehead State, Oakland, Quincy, Southern Illinois, UW-Green Bay & Youngstown State

    Upcoming Women's Event
    September 20-21: Butler Fall Invitational
    Course: Eagle Creek Golf Club (Pines)/Indianapolis, Ind./54
    Yards/Par: 6,976/72
    Teams: Eight -- Butler, Cleveland State, Detroit, Evansville, IPFW, IUPUI, Western Kentucky & Youngstown State

    Chip Ins: This week marks the only time in the fall that the men's and women's teams compete in the same tournament as both travel to the Butler Fall Invitational on Monday and Tuesday (Sept. 20-21). The tourney will conclude four consecutive days of play for the women while the men are in action for the first time in a week.

    Head Coach Tom Porten: Tom Porten is in his 14th season at the helm of the Viking men's program. He guided the team to its first ever Horizon League Championship in 1998. He was instrumental in founding the women's program in 2001 and was named the league coach of the year just two seasons later. A three-time letterwinner and captain of the golf team, he graduated from CSU in 1990. After serving as an assistant for the Vikings during the 1990-91 season, he assumed the head coaches' role the following year.

    Butler Fall Invitational: While both teams are at Eagle Creek Golf Club this week, they will be competing on different courses. The men will play the 6,646-yard, par 71 Sycamore Course as part of a 14-team field that includes league opponents Butler, Loyola, UW-Green Bay and Youngstown State. The women will face league members Butler, Detroit and Youngstown State as part of an eight-team field at the 6,976-yard, par 72 Pines Course. Paced by a sixth-place finish by Mike Rutgers, the men finished tied for sixth in last year's event. The women were 11th a year ago as Kristen Obush finished 15th.

    Porten's Take: "I am real pleased with how both teams opened the season. I thought we competed hard, but now we have to play consistently. I can't ask for anything more than constant improvement. This week will give us yet another opportunity to judge our progress against a good number of league schools."

    Recapping Last Week: Both squads opened the 2004-05 campaign last week at events hosted by Bowling Green. On the men's side, the Vikings were 10th at the John Piper Intercollegiate (Sept. 13-14) as sophomore Ben Grandy finished 13th with a one-over par 217. The women came in seventh at the Falcon Fall Classic (Sept. 18-19), firing a final round 328 -- the lowest score in the three-year history of the program. Senior Kristen Obush finished in a fourth-place tie with a 157 after leading the opening round with a 76. Freshman Amanda Gladfelter was just a shot back of Obush in her first collegiate action after shooting a team-best 77 on Sunday.

    Vikings Return Co-Player Of The Year: Junior Kristen Obush anchors the Viking line-up after earning Horizon League Co-Player of the Year honors in 2004. At the league championship, she shot a second-place score of 242 to finish three-shots out of the lead. After opening the tournament with an uncharacteristic 84, Obush rebounded in the afternoon round with a championship-low 75. She complimented it with an 83 -- the second-best score on a blustery final day. A two-time all-league selection, she is a co-captain this season along with senior Nancy Bowling.