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Walter Ylitalo shot the fifth-best round today, is six strokes back of the lead

Men's Golf 3/5/2025 2:38:00 PM

Men's Golf Moves Up One Spot in Round Two from Saddlebrook

WESLEY CHAPEL, Fl. - The NMU men's golf team completed round two of the Saddlebrook Spring Kickoff, moving up one spot to sit middle of the pack through round two.

The 'Cats now sit third of six teams with a two-round score of +62. No. 18 Missouri S&T shaved five strokes off of yesterday's total to sit at +31, followed by McKendree in second at +50. NMU holds a four-stroke lead over Roosevelt (+66) in fourth, followed by Walsh (+72) and Saint Xavier (+133).

"The strong wind and rainy conditions made play very difficult today," said head coach Ben Johnson. "With that being said, weather is something we have to get used to playing in, and I am looking forward to having a solid final round."

Despite the rain and windy conditions, the course played just a hair harder, recording an average score of 81.87 compared to yesterday's 81.49. The only hole to play under par today was once again the par-five 14th, averaging a score of 4.67.

Through two rounds of play, NMU has played the par- threes at +30 (3.63), is the third-best team on the par fours with an average of 4.65 (+86), and is +10 on the par fives (5.28). The 'Cats are third for both team birdies (21) and pars (96).

Full results from today along with live scoring for tomorrow morning's final round can be found here.

Walter Ylitalo had himself a strong second round, catapulting himself up to the top of the Wildcat team and up six spots to share a tie for eighth place as an individual, posting the fifth-best round two score of +3, giving him a two-day total of +10 (152). Walter opened his round with a birdie on the par-five fifth, recorded one of just four round two birdies on the par-four tenth, and a birdie on the par-five 14th before finishing his final six holes at -1 thanks to a circle on the hardest hole of the day, the par-four 4th. His birdie is the only recorded score under-par on that hole for the whole tournament. Walter has played the par-fives at -3 and has six birdies for the tournament, one stroke back of the leader in each category.

Both Arthur Ylitalo and Russel Sprecher shot rounds of 81 (+10) today, giving them a weekend total of +17 and +18, respectively. Tyler Annala shot just one stroke more at 82 (+11), giving him a two-day total of +17 to round out the team scoring for the Wildcats. Arthur has played the par fives a stroke under brother Walter at -2, Sprecher is just one stroke back of matching Walter on par-four scoring (+9), and Annala's 19 pars are good for a tie for tenth.

Levi Pennala moved down six spots with his round of 90 (+19) to sit in 31st with a two-day total of +30, and Brady Badker moved up four spots with his round of 83 (+12), finishing in 34th with a two-day total of +34.

Competing individually, Kyle Maki moved up three spots with his round of 84 (+13) and now sits in 29th at +28, and Joe Luke slotted down six positions after a round of 90 (+19), giving him a two-day total of +30.

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Annala: 6' 0"; Junior

Brady Badker: 5' 10"; Junior

Joe Luke: 5' 6"; Junior

Kyle Maki: 5' 11"; Senior

Russel Sprecher: 6' 0"; Senior

Arthur Ylitalo: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Walter Ylitalo: 5' 11"; Senior

Levi Pennala: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Tyler Annala
: 6' 0"; Junior

Brady Badker
: 5' 10"; Junior

Joe Luke
: 5' 6"; Junior

Kyle Maki
: 5' 11"; Senior

Russel Sprecher
: 6' 0"; Senior

Arthur Ylitalo
: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Walter Ylitalo
: 5' 11"; Senior

Levi Pennala
: Freshman