The First Case of The Mondays

MEN'S GOLF: The men's golf team finished second at the Big Ten tournament this past weekend.  The Hawks finished three strokes behind first place Illinois in what was their best finish since 1992.  Barrett Kelpin shot a 284 which was good enough for third place individually.  Brad George tied for 13th place with a 293 and Chris Brant tied for 16th with a 294.  The men's golf team has had an up and down year but this was a great showing for them.  I was a little disappointed in Vince India, he was the man for this team last year but he placed fourth on the team (tied for 22nd overall) with a 296 and never really looked like he was capable of having a sub-70 stroke round.  The strong finish ensures the team will beheaded to the regional NCAA tourney and perhaps beyond if they manage to get hot.

SOFTBALL: The Hawks dropped a pair of contests to Ohio State, losing 4-3 on Sunday and 6-5 today after nine innings.  Yeah Ohio State was no. 19 nationally but considering how hot this team was early in Big Ten play it is really surprising Iowa has fallen this far.  I know getting runs has been a problem, but now it seems as if minor inconsistencies in the pitching are getting exposed.  The Hawks have two winnable series on the road against Illinois and Minnesota before coming back to host an extremely talented Michigan squad.

BASEBALL: Iowa split a double header with Minnesota at Duane Banks field on Sunday, winning the first contest 11-4 and losing the second 12-2.  Iowa dropped the rubber match today 6-1, moving to 18-24 on the season.  Frankly, it isn't very surprising.  Iowa baseball has a couple of decent players and then a bunch of so-so college players.  They try hard sure, but the defense and hitting just aren't there and the bullpen is certainly suspect.  In short, they are the Kansas City Royals of college baseball.  Up next is the Corridor Classic which, since UNI and Iowa State no long have baseball programs, is against Coe College.........Yeah.