Huskers Travel to Colorado for Second Fall Event

Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational
Dates: Monday, Sept. 29 - Tuesday, Sept. 30
Golf Course: Colorado National Golf Club
Location: Erie, Colo.
Course Par: 72
Course Yardage: 7,771
Format: 54 holes

• Monday: 36 holes starting at 9:15 a.m. CT (Shotgun)
• Tuesday: 18 holes starting at 9 a.m. CT (Shotgun)

Scoring: Live scoring on Golfstat.com
Course Website: coloradonationalgolfclub.com
Tournament Field (18 teams): Air Force, Cal-State Fullerton, Colorado, Denver, Houston Baptist, Loyola-Marymount, Missouri-Kansas City, McNeese State, Missouri State, Nebraska, Northern Colorado, San Diego, Seattle, Texas-San Antonio, Towson, Utah State, Utah Valley, Wyoming.

Nebraska Lineup:
1. Josh Reinertson
2. Calvin Freeman
3. Ross Dickson
4. Niko Vui
5. Justin Jennings

After a three-week break from competition, the Nebraska men’s golf team heads to Erie, Colo., for the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational on Monday and Tuesday.

Colorado National Golf Club, a par-72, 7,771-yard layout, will host the 54-hole tournament. The first 36 holes are set for Monday starting at 9:15 a.m. (CT) with a shotgun start. Tuesday’s 18-hole round is also a shotgun start at 9 a.m. Live scoring for the event is available on Golfstat.com.

An 18-team field, including Air Force, Cal-State Fullerton, Colorado, Denver, Houston Baptist, Loyola-Marymount, Missouri-Kansas City, McNeese State, Missouri State, Northern Colorado, San Diego, Seattle, Texas-San Antonio, Towson, Utah State, Utah Valley and Wyoming will join Nebraska at the tournament.

Josh Reinertson, Calvin Freeman, Ross Dickson, Niko Vui and Justin Jennings will represent the Big Red in Colorado. Reinertson led the team in its first event of the season, as he tied for 24th at the Gopher Invitational following a final-round 69.

Freeman, Dickson and Jennings will also be making their second start of the season, while Vui, a freshman, is playing in his first collegiate tournament at Nebraska. Vui is the top-ranked player in his native country of Samoa.

Last Time Out: Reinertson Fires Final-Round 69 in Minnesota
Senior Josh Reinertson scorched Windsong Farm Golf Club on Monday, Sept. 8 with a 2-under-par 69 in the final round en route to a tie for 24th individually. He led Nebraska to a 10th-place finish among the teams in the Gopher Invitational.

Reinertson, a Gibbon, Neb., native started on Hole No. 10 and recorded birdies on three of his first five holes to post a 35 on his first nine. On his second nine, he opened with six consecutive pars before birdieing the seventh and ninth holes, but made bogey on No. 8. Reinertson finished the 54-hole tournament with a 12-over-par 225 total.

The Huskers produced a score of 303 in the final round, tying their best round of the tournament. On the opening day, NU posted 303 in the first round before shooting 305 in the second round. The Huskers’ 911 total for the tournament earned a tie for 10th with Notre Dame.

Senior Calvin Freeman tied for 30th with a three-round total of 14-over-par 227. Freeman made 13 pars en route to a final-round 78. On Sunday, he carded rounds of 73 and 76.

Ross Dickson turned in a 5-over-par 76 on the final day, making birdie on Hole No. 8. Dickson shot 231 for the tournament to earn a tie for 45th. Fellow senior Mike Siwa finished two strokes behind Dickson at 233. Siwa made birdie on No. 11 on his way to an 83 in the final round.

Sophomore Justin Jennings made birdies on Nos. 3 and 16 en route to an 80 in the final round. He finished 69th with a 243 total at the par-71, 7,152-yard layout.

Off the Tee (Team Notes)
• The Huskers are making their second all-time appearance at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, which is in its fifth year as a tournament. Nebraska finished seventh last season.

• The Huskers have managed top 10 finishes in four of their last five stroke play events dating back to last season.

• Under Head Coach Bill Spangler, who is in his 14th season, Nebraska has won 10 tournament titles. Spangler has also guided the Huskers to 31 top-three tournament finishes and six individual titles.

• The Nebraska men’s golf program has four NCAA Championship appearances along with seven NCAA Regional starts. In each season from 2010 to 2012, the Huskers sent one individual to the NCAA Regionals. Scott Willman tied for 40th at the Norman Regional (2012), Andrew Wyatt tied for 41st at the Colorado Regional (2011) and Brandon Crick tied for eighth at the West Regional (2010).

Chip Shots (Individual Notes)
Ross Dickson, Senior (London, England)
• Ross Dickson is making his second appearance of the season after competing at the Gopher Invitational. He tied for 45th after shooting 231 in Minnesota. Dickson holds a 77.00 stroke average this season.

• Dickson’s career-best round (68) and career-best 54-hole score (214) came at the 2014 Desert Shootout.

• Dickson’s best tournament finish (T-3rd) was at the 2012 D.A. Weibring Intercollegiate.

Calvin Freeman, Senior (Table Rock, Neb.)
• Calvin Freeman is making his second appearance of the season after playing in the Gopher Invitational, where he tied for 30th at 227. Freeman holds a 75.67 stroke average after one event.

• Freeman joined the Huskers in 2013-14 as a junior after competing at Southeast Community College-Beatrice for two seasons. In his first year at Nebraska, Freeman played in 11 of 12 tournaments for a 74.90 stroke average over 31 rounds.

• Freeman has shot his career-low round of 68 twice.

• Freeman’s best career 54-hole score was 211, which he fired at the 2014 Desert Shootout.

• Freeman’s best finish was a tie for ninth at the 2014 Oak Hill Intercollegiate.

Justin Jennings, Sophomore (Amarillo, Texas)
• Justin Jennings is making his second showing of the season after finishing 69th at the Gopher Invitational. He holds an 81.00 stroke average after one tournament.

• Jennings played in eight tournaments last season as a true freshman, compiling a 76.06 stroke average over 18 rounds.

• Jennings’ lowest career round (69), lowest career 54-hole score (217) and best tournament finish (T-22nd) came at the 2013 Price’s Give ‘Em Five Invitational.

Ben Maschka, Freshman (Omaha, Neb.)
• Ben Maschka is in his first season at Nebraska after a standout career at Omaha Creighton Prep High School where he won the individual Class A state title in 2014.

Cameron Palmer, Junior (Gilbert, Ariz.)
• Cameron Palmer did not compete for the Huskers in 2013-14, but played in two tournaments during the spring 2013 season. He holds a stroke average of 80.00 in three stroke play rounds at Nebraska after he transferred from Arizona State during his sophomore season.

Josh Reinertson, Senior (Gibbon, Neb.)
• Josh Reinertson is making his second appearance of the season after tying for 24th at the Gopher Invitational. He holds a 75.00 stroke average this season after one tournament.

• Reinertson begins his senior season after a summer that included a trip to the U.S. Amateur as well as a tie for fourth at the Nebraska Amateur and an appearance in the semifinals of the Nebraska Match Play.

• Reinertson proved to be a consistent player for the Huskers during the spring 2014 season, compiling a 73.85 stroke average in 13 rounds. He managed a career-best fifth-place finish at the 2014 Oak Hill Intercollegiate and fired a career-low 54-hole score of 213 at the Desert Shootout.

Mike Siwa, Senior (Omaha, Neb.)
• Mike Siwa played in the season-opening Gopher Invitational, tying for 49th at 233. He holds a 77.67 stroke average this season after one event.

• Siwa, a fifth-year senior, competed in seven tournaments for the Huskers in 2013-14, earning a 76.39 stroke average.

• Siwa’s best 54-hole score is 221, which he accomplished at the 2014 Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate. His best career result is 18th place at the 2014 Oak Hill Intercollegiate.

Niko Vui, Freshman (Apia, Samoa)
• Niko Vui will make his first start for the Huskers at the Mark Simpson Invitational.

• The top-ranked amateur player in Samoa, Vui spent his high school career golfing at LDS Pesega College.

Aaron Wong, Junior (Chandler, Ariz.)
• Aaron Wong played in two tournaments last season for a 75.33 stroke average over six rounds.

• Wong’s lowest round (68), lowest 54-hole score (223) and best tournament finish (T-7th) all came at the 2012 Fairway Club Invitational.

Nathan Wong, Sophomore (Chandler, Ariz.)
• Nathan Wong competed in the first tournament of the 2013-14 campaign, recording a tie for 33rd, after redshirting in 2012-13. He holds a career stroke average of 74.67.

Offseason Notes
• Former Husker golfer Brady Schnell fired a second-round 59 at Sirocco Golf Course on Aug. 1 while competing at the ATB Financial Classic in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Schnell, an Omaha, Neb., native, became the first player in PGA Tour Canada history to card a sub-60 score.

• Josh Reinertson qualified for the U.S. Amateur after firing 11-under-par 133 for two rounds at Willowbend Golf Club in Wichita, Kan., on July 16. At the U.S. Amateur, he shot 80 and 77 and missed the 64-player cut for the match play portion of the tournament.

• Newcomer Ben Maschka captured individual medalist honors at the Nebraska Class A State Boys Golf Tournament at Holmes Park Golf Course on May 29. Maschka fired a pair of 68s at the two-day, 36-hole tournament to lead Omaha Creighton Prep to its third consecutive team title.