DADE CITY, Fla. (February 11, 2020) – The Loyola University Chicago men's golf team closed out its stay at the Earl Yestingsmeier Match Play on a high note today, defeating Xavier by a final margin of 4.0-2.0 to claim seventh place at the Lake Jovita Golf & Country Club in Dade City, Fla.
 
"Nice to end the week with a win," Loyola head coach Erik Hoops said.  "Match play is just a funny game sometimes.  Against Eastern Michigan, we were right in every match and they just barely closed us out.  When we took on Ball State, it was proof that even when you do get the required amount of wins, it can sometimes just be one guy getting hot and winning big to take you down as a team.  Instead of being upset and licking our wounds from that, the guys battled hard played great today to end on a high note.  We're excited to continue the spring season in our chase for an MVC Championship at Flossmoor in April.  We have a lot of things to build off of."
 
Loyola picked up victories in four of its six head-to-head matchups with the Musketeers, none of which were bigger than an emphatic 8-and-7 triumph for freshman Zach Walsh.  Senior Justin LaFrance took home a 4-and-3 win, while junior Devin Johnson (3-and-1) and freshman Timmy Crawford (3-and-2) also added points to the Maroon & Gold's team tally.
 
Junior Tyler Anderson (one down) and sophomore Nate Vance (two down) both fell in their pairings.
 
Loyola will be idle for just under a month before it travels to North Myrtle Beach, S.C. for the Bash at the Beach, March 9-10.