KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – Freshman Austin Cherichella (Orlando, Fla./Lake Nona HS) tied for second overall individually to lead the FGCU men's golf team to a fourth-place team finish at the Any Given Tuesday Intercollegiate held at Oak Point Golf Club. Cherichella closed out the third round with a score of 72 giving him a three-day total of 209.
 
As a team, FGCU shot 283 on Tuesday and finished with a three-round total of 853. Coastal Carolina won the tournament with a combined score of 827 with States Fort finishing first among individual players. Kennesaw State (840) and Jacksonville State (848) placed second and third, respectively. Ford had a three-day score of 205, while Cherichella was in a four-way tie for second.
 
"I'm proud of how we competed this weekend and we're excited to start preparing for our next event. I thought Austin Cherichella in particular did a great job in his first collegiate event which was awesome to see," said head coach Andrew Danna. "We saw some encouraging signs of what our potential is and now we have to continue building on that."
 
Cherichella's 209 was the 13^th lowest 54-hole total in program history, while his second-place finish is the best since 2017-18 and he becomes just the 11^th freshman in program history to either win or finish runner-up in an event.
 
As a team, the fourth-place finish was the best since tying for fourth at the FAU Spring Championship in March 2019 where the Eagles also shot a 54-hole total of 853 which is the eighth-lowest in program history.
 
Senior Van Holmgren (Plymouth, Minn./Waysata HS/North Dakota State) tied for 15^th overall with a score of 215, while Frankie Capan III (North Oaks, Minn./Northwest Christian HS/Alabama) finished in a tie for 22^nd after shooting a three-day best 69 on Tuesday (219 total). Graduate Michael O'Brien (West Chester, Ohio/Archbishop Moeller HS/Saint Joseph's) finished tied for 22^nd (220). Brady Madsen and Jon Hopkins each had their lowest scores (71 each) on Tuesday to finish tied for 36^th (223) and tied for 45^th (227), respectively.
 
The Eagles finished the tournament with 71 birdies to lead the 10-team field. O'Brien and Cherichella led FGCU with 13, while Holmgren and Capan each had 12.
 
FGCU will return to action next Sunday and Monday, Jan. 31-Feb. 1, at the Sea Best Invitational hosted by Jacksonville at TPC at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
 
Any Given Tuesday – Final Team Results
1. #46/35 Coastal Carolina – 282-275-270=827
2. Kennesaw State – 275-282-283=840
3. Jacksonville State – 284-288-276=848
4. FGCU – 285-285-283=853
5. Charleston Southern – 297-286-286=869
6. Lipscomb – 296-289-289=874
T7. Winthrop – 292-296-288=876
T7. Morehead State – 288-296-292=876
9. #10 High Point – 292-303-290=885
10. USC Upstate – 309-308-294=911
 
FGCU Final Individual Scores
T2 - Austin Cherichella – 69-68-72=209
T15 - Van Holmgren – 68-72-75=215
T22 - Frankie Capan III – 77-73-69=219
T27 - Michael O'Brien – 73-72-75=220
T36 - Brady Madsen – 75-77-71=223
T45 - Jon Hopkins – 77-79-71=227
 
For complete coverage of the FGCU men's golf team, follow the Eagles on Twitter and Instagram at @FGCU_MGOLF and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com.  You can also sign-up to have news on FGCU men's golf and other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.

HEAD COACH ANDREW DANNA:
Danna will enter his second year at the helm of the men's golf program this fall. He served the previous season as the assistant at LSU. Prior to that he was the ultra-successful head coach for six years at Lynn University where he led them to the 2018 NCAA Division II national championship and was, subsequently, chosen the David Williams National Coach of the Year. He also led the Fighting Knights to three national runner-up placements, with a third and eighth place finish in his other two seasons.
 
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IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 82 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 38 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships, including three men's golfers. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (#24, 2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. In 2019-20, they ran their streak to three consecutive years leading both groups with the highest percentage of teams again receiving such high distinction (33% via 5 of 15 programs). FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
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