Chambana Sun

Fighting Illini sophomore Ryan Voois achieved his first collegiate victory at the Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate held at Atkins Golf Club in Urbana, Illinois. Voois led the No. 18-ranked Illinois team to defend its title at this event, which marks the conclusion of their regular-season schedule.

Head coach Mike Small commented on Voois' performance: "He hasn't been in this position much before. He's a sophomore on paper, but he's really a freshman because he didn't play much last year on that stacked team that we had, so he's learning as he goes."

Voois' total score over 54 holes was 212 (-1), which was the only under-par score for the weekend. He set a career-low and tournament-record with a score of 64 (-7) in Round 1, followed by scores of 76 (+4) and 72 (+1) in subsequent rounds. He finished one stroke ahead of Michigan State's Ashton McCulloch (213).

Small expressed satisfaction with Voois' development: "I was anxious to see what he had today, after yesterday... I wanted to see how he could put that behind him, and he did a really good job of coming out on point today. I'm happy for him. Now he's got his first win, and hopefully he can begin winning bigger and better events."

In addition to Voois' performance, freshman Max Herendeen and junior Jackson Buchanan contributed top-10 finishes for Illinois. Buchanan tied for seventh overall with a final round score of 72 (+1), while Herendeen tied for third after shooting a final round of 74 (+3).

Fifth-year senior Tyler Goecke improved his standing by carding a final-round score of 74 (+3), finishing tied for 53rd with an overall score of 234 (+21). Freshman Ethan Wilson ended tied for 26th at 224 (+11), although his last round did not contribute to the team's scoring.

Coach Small emphasized consistency: "This is the same lineup we've had for the last several events because we're trying to find some consistency and solid play... when we find that consistency, we will be a solid team."

Illinois secured its fourth victory of the season with a team score of 864 (+12), outperforming Big Ten competitors Michigan State (874), Michigan (881), and Northwestern (883).

The Illini also saw strong performances from individual competitors Timmy Crawford, Jerry Ji, and Piercen Hunt who all finished within the top ten.

Looking ahead, the Fighting Illini will compete in the Big Ten Men's Golf Championship from April 26-28 at Scioto Country Club in Columbus, Ohio.