SILVIS, Ill. - No. 23 William Woods University started strong and pulled through to the final 15-team cut, ultimately placing 14th out of 29 teams with a 39-over 891 (294, 290, 307) in the 73rd Annual NAIA Men's Golf National Championships, held from Tuesday to Friday at TPC Deere Run; the competition was restructured to a three-round event with a cut to 15 teams after the second round due to numerous weather delays Tuesday, which made the initial first round unfinishable.

Despite dropping down the team table in the final round, the Owls recorded an 18-hole team scoring average of 297, three strokes better than their first nationals appearance at 6,809-yard, par-71 TPC Deere Run, when they scored a four-round 1,201 (300.25 18-hole average) in 2021.

Freshmen Jose Monge (70, 71, 80) and Liam Toole (76, 72, 73) guided Woods on the golfer side, tying for 38th with an 8-over 221. Toole totaled eight birdies and Monge had seven.

"Really proud of the season these guys had, nine wins, AMC conference champions and a top 15 finish at nationals is a great season," William Woods golf coach Aaron Murphy said. "Looking forward to our program building on this and working hard going forward. Had a fun season with this group of guys and can't wait to see what the future brings."

A Guacima, Costa Rica native, Monge signed for WWU's best round of the entire tournament, a Round 1 1-under 70 Wednesday in which he wrapped up with a birdie-birdie finish, the last two of his five birdies for the round. Monge also held the Owls' best end-of-round placing, sitting tied for 12th after 36 holes with his 1-under 141.

Meanwhile, Toole used the clubs in his bag well, shooting no higher of a round than a 76, a team best. That was in Round 1, and he did consistently well over the final 36 holes, scoring a 3-over 145 between them.

Rounding out the Owls' scores, Spencer Worley tied for 43rd with a 223 (73, 74, 76), and Tim Falk (75, 81, 78) and Joseph McCandless (79, 73, 82) tied for 72nd with a 234.

William Woods looks forward to making the turn onto the greens of next school year as the Owls make a complete transition to the Heart of America Athletic Conference.

Results (Final 15)

1 (National Champion) - No. 4 Lindsey Wilson 10-over 862 (287, 282, 293)

2 - No. 2 Oklahoma City 12-over 864 (287, 285, 292)

3 - No. 8 Wayland Baptist 14-over 866 (280, 291, 295)

4 - No. 1 Keiser 15-over 867 (289, 281, 297)

T-5 - No. 9 MidAmerica Nazarene 20-over 872 (295, 289, 288)

T-5 - No. 3 Dalton State 20-over 872 (284, 290, 298)
Individual Winner: Jack Whaley 8-under 205 (61, 72, 72)

7 - No. 17 Bellevue 21-over 873 (289, 288, 296)

8 - No. 5 OUAZ 27-over 879 (290, 296, 293)

9 - No. 12 Master's 28-over 880 (291, 283, 306)

10 - No. 6 Texas Wesleyan 31-over 883 (287, 296, 300)

11 - No. 16 William Carey 35-over 887 (301, 287, 299)

12 - No. 10 British Columbia 36-over 888 (291, 293, 304)

13 - No. 14 Indiana Wesleyan 37-over 889 (297, 292, 300)

14 - No. 23 William Woods 39-over 891 (294, 290, 307)
T-38th: Jose Monge 8-over 221 (70, 71, 80)
T-38th: Liam Toole 8-over 221 (76, 72, 73)
T-43rd: Spencer Worley 10-over 223 (73, 74, 76)
T-72nd: Tim Falk 21-over 234 (75, 81, 78) - Round 2 didn't count toward team score
T-72nd: Joseph McCandless 21-over 234 (79, 73, 82) - Round 1, 3 didn't count toward team score

15 - Victoria BC 42-over 894 (295, 294, 305)