Men's Golf Beats Noles to Reach JNI Title Match

Monday, October 7

Columbus, Ohio

All Day

Duke University

Florida State

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Men's Golf Beats Noles to Reach JNI Title Match

10/7/2019 10:27:00 PM | Men's Golf

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DUBLIN, Ohio – Thanks to a back-nine charge from Adrien Pendaries and Steven DiLisio, the Duke men's golf team rallied to beat Florida State in the semifinals of the Jack Nicklaus Invitational on Monday at the Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

The seventh-ranked Blue Devils won four of the six matches on Monday over the Seminoles, 4-1-1, to clinch a spot in Tuesday's championship match against Clemson, which beat Ohio State Monday, 3-0-3. The host Buckeyes will battle the Noles Tuesday in the third-place match.

Duke led FSU 2-1 after the morning session of foursomes as Chandler Eaton and Evan Katz defeated Greyson Porter and Fletcher Wunderlich, 2&1, while Pendaries and DiLisio used a 4&3 victory over John Pak and Jamie Li.

"That was probably the most fun I've ever had in a golf tournament," said Eaton. "Muirfield Village is pure. I got to play with one of my greatest friends and teammates, and we played some amazing golf. We stayed so present and focused on what we were doing that we almost forgot what the score was. I hope to keep that focus carried into tomorrow and honestly for the rest of my golfing career. Tomorrow is a new day, we need to forget the results of today and win some matches tomorrow."

Eaton and Katz put Duke's first point on the board in the afternoon four-balls, moving the Blue Devils one point from advancing, as they made quick work of Porter and Fletcher, 6&5. The Duke duo led wire-to-wire, ripping off wins on the sixth, seventh, eighth, 11th and 12th to secure the dominant win.

"Today was fun because it's a format we don't normally get to experience," said Katz. "Match play is also different, but Chandler and I think our way around the course very similarly so we were able to get into a nice rhythm and settle in. I think seeing a lot of good shots today will help build confidence going into the singles tomorrow."

With Eaton and Katz on the board in the afternoon, the drama began to unfold with the Seminoles holding back-nine leads in the other two matches, needing to win both to force a playoff. Pak and Li led Pendaries and DiLisio 2up through the 10th, while Cole Anderson and Parker Reddig led Duke's Quinn Riley and Qi wen Wong 2up through 12.

"Steven and I played really well today," said Pendaries. "This morning went exactly to plan, as we were able to apply pressure early and finish the match from there. This afternoon was an amazing match. Hats off the John and Jamie who played really well. At the beginning, Steven kept us in the match with some good saves while I was struggling a bit. I was able to help him a bit at the end of the front to get back within striking distance. On the back, we played well with two more eagles and a bunch of birdies to finish the match on 17. We both had a lot of fun."

Pendaries and DiLisio turned their fortunes on a six-hole stretch beginning at the 11th with eagle, birdie, birdie, birdie, eagle and a chip-in birdie on the 16th – winning four of those holes to seize their field lead of the afternoon. The Blue Devils clinched the overall match when both groups got up-and-down to halve the 17th hole with par.

"Today was a lot of fun," said DiLisio. "It was a very different atmosphere than what were used to but we just tried to enjoy it and make a lot of birdies. The morning went how we hoped it would without much stress. In the afternoon, we got off to a slower start but hung in there. Adrien made some pretty outstanding eagles and I threw a few birdies in there and finishing the comeback was pretty sweet."

Looking to sweep the afternoon, Riley and Wong staged a comeback of their own, winning the 13th with birdie to pull within one. Riley holed out from the bunker for birdie on the 14th to put the good guys on even terms, and Duke took a 1up lead with a birdie on 16. The teams halved the 17th, but Anderson and Reddig won the 18th to halve the match.

"We were just focused on our own game," said Wong. "After a few birdies, to just keep it going, keep pressing because the other team was also playing well. We knew that every hole counts and we just had to keep fighting."

Tuesday's championship match between ACC rivals Duke and Clemson begins at 8:30 a.m. ET with six singles matches. The consolation match between Ohio State and Florida State begins at 9:30 a.m. ET with six singles matches.

Monday Results -- Morning Session -- Duke 2-1-0
DUKE: Eaton/Katz def. Porter/Wunderlich, 2&1
DUKE: DiLisio/Pendaries def. Pak/Li, 4&3
FSU: Anderson/Reddig def. Riley/Wong, 5&4

Monday Results -- Afternoon Session -- Duke 2-0-1
DUKE: Eaton/Katz def. Porter/Wunderlich, 6&5
DUKE: DiLisio/Pendaries def. Pak/Li, 2&1
TIE: Riley/Wong vs. Anderson/Reddig

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