The St. Edward’s men’s golf team swung into the spring season with a strong first-place team finish at the Feb. 4-5 Jack Brown Memorial Invitational with 860 strokes. Senior Andrew Spear led the team by shooting three-under-par 213 and earned the second-place spot, while sophomore Clayton King and junior Ryan McGinley tied for third-place with 214 strokes each.

In just his first year leading SEU, head coach Chris Hill says that the team’s work ethic and thirst for competition is what has led them to such an early success.

“To kick off the spring season with a win is incredible. It really shows the character of the team,” Hill said. “They’ve put a lot of work in from September to now, and their effort has shown off.”

Hill also says that he has complete confidence in the depth of his roster and believes that the inter-competitiveness of the team is what led to the athletes securing three of the top four individual spots.

“I’m pretty confident in one through 12. Someone’s going to rise to the top. It’s been a while that St. Edward’s has been this deep,” Hill said. “We have 12 guys fighting for five spots, so that inner-competition is speeding up everyone’s development.”

Spear says that the impressive start has resulted in a significant confidence boost for the team and their eagerness to compete.

“Golf’s just a big confidence game, in my opinion, so it’s all about being confident in what you’re doing and what you’re practicing. When you go out as a team and win a tournament by 21 shots, it definitely helps the confidence,” Spear said.

King, who transferred to SEU from Concordia, said that Spear has helped him adjust to the program and bring out the best in him during competition.

“[Spear] took me under his wing when I got here to St. Edward’s. … We push each other is the best way to put it, which goes with the internal competition,” King said.

As his collegiate career winds down, Spear says he has clear goals to reach this season and that the culture change that Hill is establishing will leave the program in good hands moving forward.

“I want to win a conference championship and obviously get as far as we can in the postseason. … In the past, we’ve only had seven or eight guys on the team. With [Hill], he’s brought in another four so now we have 12. Just the internal competition is fueling everyone and making everyone better.”

Hill says that his experience and commitment to the program is what excites him the most moving forward.

“I take a keen interest in their personal development on the golf course. I put them on a plan to hold them accountable to their development, and when they see some results, they want more,” Hill said. “I want practice to be a lot harder than the tournament. So, when we go to the tournament, I know they’re prepared.”

The Hilltoppers will travel to San Antonio for the Rattler Invitational that takes place Feb. 25-26.