Huskers Finish Strong at Bearcat Invitational

Jackson Benge and Brodie Cunningham continued their solid play early in the fall season by claiming top-15 individual finishes to lead the Nebraska men's golf team to a fourth-place showing at the Bearcat Invitational in Cincinnati on Tuesday.

Benge, a sophomore out of Omaha Westside High School, finished as one of Nebraska's top individual finishers for the third consecutive tournament to open the fall by tying for 14th with a three-round total of 212 (-1). Benge closed with a final-round 73 (+2) Tuesday after opening with rounds of 69 (-2) and 70 (-1) Monday on the 7,279-yard layout of the Coldstream Country Club.

Fellow sophomore Brodie Cunningham (Glasgow, Scotland) matched Benge stroke for stroke, with matching rounds of 69 (-2), 70 (-1) and 73 (+2) to tie for 14th at 212 (-1). It was Cunningham's second straight top-15 showing.

Sautron, a junior from Reunion Island, France, fueled Nebraska's rise in the team standings over the final 36 holes that included NU's best round of the tournament with a 68 (-4) on Tuesday. Sautron, who settled for an opening-round 76 (+5), opened Monday's second round with six straight birdies on Nos. 10-15 to card a 69 (-2). He finished in a tie for 23rd in the final individual standings at 213 (E), vaulting 20 spots up the leader board in the final round.

Caden Mickelson added three consistent rounds of 72 (+1) to finish at 216 (+3) in a tie for 40th in the 96-player field. Mickelson started the final round on fire with birdies on three of his first four holes (No. 3, 4, 6) before taking double-bogeys on No. 9 and No. 11. He finished his round with nine consecutive pars. 

As a team, the Huskers closed at 853 (+1) with rounds of 286, 281 and 286. The hosts from Cincinnati took the team title at 834 (-18), while Little Rock finished second at 845 (-7). Arkansas edged the Big Red by two strokes at 851 (-1).

In a strong 18-team field, the Huskers picked up wins over Big Ten counterparts Ohio State (856) and Maryland (866) along with wins over Louisville (854) from the ACC, Kentucky (859) from the SEC and Kansas (858), TCU (866), UCF (872) and Iowa State (873) from the Big 12.

Furman's Harris Barth took home medalist honors at 204 (-9), while John Daly II was the tournament runner-up at 207 (-6), three strokes behind Barth.

In other tournament action Tuesday, Evan McDermott and Bryson Oots earned top-five finishes at the Bluejay Invitational at Shadow Ridge Country Club in Omaha. McDermott carded solid rounds of 70, 70 and 71 to finish at 211 (-5), while Oots added back-to-back rounds of 69 (-3) Monday before closing with a 73 Tuesday to match McDermott in a tie for fifth at 211 (-5). McDermott's effort included an eagle on the par-5 12th hole on Tuesday, while Oots fired an eagle of his own on the par-4 14th hole in Monday's opening round.

James Ackerman added a tie for 13th at 214 (-2), including a a second-round 68 (-4) that included an eagle on the par-5 12th hole on Monday. Nebraska true freshman Thomas Bryson put four Big Red golfers in the top 20 by tying for 16th at 215 (-1). Bryson's second-round 69 (-3) included an eagle on the par-5 16th hole.

Davis Johnson rounded out the NU contingent by finishing with a 229 (+13) in a tie for 58th. Nebraska's five golfers all competed as individuals in a 71-player field and did not produce a team score.

Nebraska returns to Lincoln to play host to its lone home event of the season next week with the Git-R-Done Invitational at Firethorn Golf Club (Sept. 22-23). Action begins on Monday, Sept. 22 at 8 a.m. with 36 holes, before concluding with the final round on Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 8 a.m.

Bearcat Invitational
Sept. 15-16, 2025
Coldstream CC (Par 71, 7,279 Yards)
Cincinnati, Ohio

Final Team Results
1. Cincinnati - 278-278-278=834 (-18)
2. Little Rock - 287-278-280=845 (-7)
3. Arkansas - 280-289-282=851 (-1)
4. Nebraska - 286-281-286=853 (+1)
5. Louisville - 281-281-292=854 (+2)
T6. Memphis - 286-286-284=856 (+4)
T6. Ohio State - 289-284-283=856 (+4)
8. Kansas - 289-281-288=858 (+6)
9. Kentucky - 291-283-285=859 (+7)
10. USF - 285-296-280=861 (+9)
11. UNCG - 286-283-295=864 (+12)
T12. TCU - 29-290-286=866 (+14)
T12. Maryland - 284-285-297=866 (+14)
14. Sam Houston - 289-291-288=868 (+16)
15. UCF - 294-292-286=872 (+20)
16. Iowa State - 298-296-279=873 (+21)
T17. Augusta - 287-290-302=879 (+27)
T17. Furman - 286-301-292=879 (+27)

Final Individual Results
1. Harris Barth, Furman - 67-69-68=204 (-9)
2. John Daly II, Arkansas - 67-71-69=207 (-6)
T3. Jack Beauchamp, TCU - 66-72-70=208 (-5)
T3. Wilhelm Ryding, USF - 69-69-70=208 (-5)
T3. Mark Stockdale, Little Rock - 70-69-69=208 (-5)
T6. Leo Wessel, Cincinnati - 72-67-70=209 (-4)
T6. Connor McNeely, Cincinnati - 73-69-67=209 (-4)
T6. Ed Featherstone, Little Rock - 75-67-67=209 (-4)
T9. Pieter Rossouw, Augusta - 70-67-73=210 (-3)
T9. Ryan Ford, Cincinnati - 68-72-70=210 (-3)

Nebraska Individuals
T14. Jackson Benge - 69-70-73=212 (-1)
T14. Brodie Cunningham - 69-70-73=212 (-1)
T23. Rudy Sautron - 76-69-68=213 (E)
T40. Caden Mickelson - 72-72-72=216 (+3)
T90. Quinn Yost - 79-76-75=230 (+17)

Bluejay Invitational
Sept. 15-16, 2025
Shadow Ridge CC (Par 72, 7,079 Yards)
Omaha, Neb.

Nebraska Individuals
*T5. Evan McDermott - 70-70-71=211 (-5)
*T5. Bryson Oots - 69-69-73=211 (-5)
*T13. James Ackerman - 76-68-70=214 (-2)
*T16. Thomas Bryson - 70-69-76=215 (-1)
*T58. Davis Johnson - 74-75-80=229 (+13)
*competed as individuals