ALPHARETTA, Ga. - Marc-Etienne Bussieres, the only senior on the University of South Alabama men's golf team, recorded a 1-under-par 69 in the final round of his collegiate career Saturday at the NCAA Southeast Regional to post his sixth top-10 finish of the season.
He finished the three-day, 54-hole event held at the 7,182-yard, par-70 Capital City Club Crabapple Course with a 1-over-par 211 total to tie for 10th place with two other individuals. He became the seventh Jaguar to card a round below 70 at an NCAA regional, joining a group that includes Chris Piumelli, who accomplished the feat yesterday in the second round.
Bussieres began the day with a three-putt bogey on the first hole, but got the shot back at No. 7 and made the turn at even par. He was still there at the last hole, but a six iron from 189 yards left him with a 10-foot putt, which he holed.
That shot allowed USA to pass No. 28 Arkansas in the team standings, as the Jaguars finished seventh in the field of 13 with a three-day 866 total. The Jags recorded a 290 team score over the last 18 holes.
"Coach came to see me before that final tee shot, and I asked him how we were doing because I knew that after the first nine we were a couple of shots ahead of the team in fifth place," said Bussieres. "He told me we were four behind, so I was disappointed, but he looked up the individual standings and said that if I made a birdie I would have a chance to advance individually. I hit a good tee shot and a perfect six iron, and I didn't have any pressure on me so I just nailed the putt.
"I was pretty solid the entire round," he added. "Although I didn't take advantage of some holes today, I plucked along all day."
"What can I say? Marc is a rock," Jaguar head coach Ben Hannan commented. "Clearly he will be missed, but I am so excited for Marc and his future. To finish with a birdie on a 480-yard par four, where he stuffed it -- that was the closest ball I saw there all day - and then knocked in that 10-footer, marked the closing of a great career. I can't thank him enough for his leadership this year, or for what he has meant to the program over his four years as a student-athlete.
"He is the epitome of a true Jaguar, both in the classroom and on the golf course. We're very happy for him that he closed out with a great performance."
The top four seeds in the regional - No. 4 Oklahoma State, ninth-ranked Arizona State, No. 14 Georgia Tech and No. 20 Clemson - all advanced to the NCAA national championships, which will begin June 1, along with 10th-seeded Georgia Southern. The Cowboys won their NCAA-record eighth regional with a 1-over-par 841 team score following a final-round 3-under-par 277. They defeated the Tigers - who led entering play today - by two shots and Yellow Jackets by four, while the Sun Devils and Eagles posted 863 totals.
Tech's 272 score in the final round was the lowest posted in the tournament by any team.
USA, the 12th seed in the tournament, finished ahead of four top-50 programs including Arkansas -- 33rd-ranked Wake Forest, 40th-ranked Mississippi and No. 44 Furman were the others. The Jags ended up three strokes behind ASU and GSU.
"Obviously we are disappointed to miss out by three shots," Hannan observed. "We felt like we were right there - and we were - but simply didn't close. On the flip side, I'm tremendously proud of this group of guys, they fought and battled to give themselves an opportunity with five holes to go. It just wasn't meant to be this year.
"But, we bring back four out of five who competed this week - we will learn from this and get better. In an event of this magnitude the pressure is immense on these young men, and how you react to that is key. The experience, in and of itself - as disappointing as it was - will make them more seasoned veterans even though they are still pretty young."
OSU's Peter Uihlein posted a three-day total of 4-under-par 206 to earn medalist honors by two shots over Logan Blondell of GSU. Robbie Fillmore of BYU earned an individual berth to the NCAA championships as the low performer not on one of the five teams advancing after defeating Mississippi's Jonathan Randolph on the fifth hole of a sudden-death playoff - the two were part of a five-way tie for fourth with 1-under-par 209 totals.
Jack Hiluta used a 72 in the last round to record a 54-hole score of 219, ending the tournament in a tie for 41st place. He paced the team with three birdies on the day, including on back-to-back holes at the fourth and fifth.
"It was a great experience, and it's exciting to know that we can compete with any team in the country," said Hiluta. "What we need to do is compete every week with these teams. I think we can do that, I'm really excited about next year. Playing in events such as this and getting that experience really helps you out. With four guys returning who will hopefully be playing next year, we will have this experience under our belt. Every minute you spend on the course in these tournaments will make you better the next time you play.
"I'm very proud of the guys this week, they did a great job," he added.
Piumelli got to 2-under-par on the front nine, but ended up with a 74 for the day for a 217 total as he tied for 30th. His birdies came on holes No. 2 and 5, both par fours. McLain Leberte - who birdied the fifth and 11th holes -- finished two strokes behind Hiluta in the overall standings after posting a 75 over the last 18 holes, and Blake Kelley carded a 77 for a 229 three-day total.
"It was a great experience, especially for a freshman. I struggled all week, but it's always good to get your feet wet this early," Kelley explained. "Today was the only day I was nervous, and that was really only over the first four or five holes. You have to be so patient, hit to the center of greens and take your medicine when you need to."
It was the first time that the Jags qualified for an NCAA Regional since 2005, and seventh regional appearance in school history, although Bussieres qualified as an individual as a junior last spring.
"Perhaps we should have been here three years ago, we were pretty close, but this was great," he stated. "Obviously it would have been even better to get to the national championships, that was our objective coming here and we were close to accomplishing it. I think everybody learned from this experience, we know we have to close better than we did today. A lot of times this year we didn't play very well in the first round, but we overcame that here."
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
-USA-
NCAA Southeast Regional
Capitol City Club Crabapple Course, Alpharetta, Ga.
Par 70, 7,182 yards
Team Scores: 1) Oklahoma State 282-282-277-841 (+1); 2) Clemson 283-278-282-843; 3) Georgia Tech 287-286-272-845; T4) Arizona State 290-288-285-863; T4) Georgia Southern 288-293-282-863; 6) Brigham Young 289-287-288-864; 7) South Alabama 292-284-290-866; 8) Arkansas 296-282-289-867; 9) Wake Forest 292-291-286-869; 10) Mississippi 301-285-287-873; T11) Furman 292-294-288-874; 12) Coastal Carolina 293-302-279-874; 13) Towson 308-282-287-877.
Individual Leaders: 1) Peter Uihlein, OSU 68-70-68-206 (-4); 2) Logan Blondell, GSU 69-69-70-208; T3) Robbie Fillmore, BYU 68-69-72-209; T3) Jonathan Randolph, UM 68-72-69-209; T3) Morgan Hoffman, OSU 71-69-69-209; T3) John Tyler Griffin, GT 68-73-68-209; T3) Ben Martin, CU 71-69-69-209; T8) Chesson Hadley, GT 73-69-68-210; T8) Jeff Karlsson, Ken St 75-68-67-210; T10) Marc-Etienne Bussieres, USA 71-71-69-211; T10) Scott Pinckney, ASU 69-71-71-211; T10) Dan Obremski, CCU 69-76-66-211.
South Alabama Scores: T12) Marc-Etienne Bussieres 71-71-69-211 (+1); T30) Chris Piumelli 77-66-74-217; T41) Jack Hiluta 71-76-72-219; T49) McLean Leberte 75-71-75-221; T70) Blake Kelley 75-77-77-229.
