Bulldogs secure team, individual title in Phoenix

PHOENIX, Ariz. – The No. 22 Mississippi State men's golf team and Ruan Pretorius claimed team and individual championships at the Desert Mountain Invitational on Sunday. The Bulldogs secured their second win of the season and Pretorius notched his first win with the Bulldogs.

"I am obviously very proud of our team for the resilience and determination they showed today," MSU head coach Dusty Smith said. "It certainly wasn't a perfect round, but the guys did a great job of accepting their shots and moving on from them. I can't say enough about Ruan and how he played this week. It was great watching him win the individual title."

Pretorius secured the individual championship three strokes ahead of ArkansasLittle Rock's Matteo Cristoni. He shot a career-low 208 and finished at a careerlow 8-under. He registered 16 total birdies for the tournament and went bogey-free on the front nine in the second round and the back nine in the third round.

Austin Vukovits made a 13-spot jump in the final round to finish in a five-way tie for seventh. He carded 11 total birdies and an eagle with scores of 70 and 72 in the first and third rounds, along with a bogey-free back nine in the final round.

Garrett Endicott and Ford

Clegg both finished play with top-20 finishes. Endicott tied for 12th with Santa Clara's Alex Conley and Little Rock's Archie Smith. He shot 72 and 71 in the first two rounds, carding nine birdies total and an eagle. Clegg made a 13-spot jump to end the tournament in a four-way tie for 19th with a tournament-low 72 in the final round. He made six birdies in the round and 12 total for the tournament.

William Wann, playing as an individual, carded six birdies in the tournament and tied for 41st. Hunter Logan tied for 70th.

MSU will return to play at the Schenkel Invitational in Statesboro, Georgia, on March 17-19.