CLARKSVILLE  - Junior Dustin Korte shot two-under par in the final round, helping Austin Peay State University men's golf team finish second at the Samford Intercollegiate, Tuesday.

Korte got a lot of help as the Govs posted a final-round 292, which was the best final-round team score as well as the tournament's third-best team round. Sophomore Anthony Bradley shot a final-round 72, sophomore Trey Tarpley fired a 74 and sophomore Marco Iten got on board with a 76 - his best round in the event.

"Dustin really had a good week," head coach Kirk Kayden said. "He got into a groove in the first round, struggled a little bit in the second round, but got it back together down the stretch. His short game was tremendous and when you putt it well, you're going to be able to go low."

Austin Peay's three-round 891was nine shots back of tournament winner Samford (882), leaving the Govs tied for second with Davidson (891). Sam Houston State (893) was fourth, while Western Carolina, Winthrop and Belmont all tied for fifth at 904. Murray State was the next OVC team, finishing ninth (912), with Eastern Kentucky in 10^th (917). SIU Edwardsville and UT Martin tied for 15^th at 942 while Tennessee Tech was tied for 17^th with a 949.

Korte finished the 54-hole tournament with a three-under par 213 (68-75-70), only two shots off medalist Casey O'Toole, from Samford. Bradley joined him the top-10 with a five-over par 221 (74-75-72). Tarpley's final-round 74 bumped him up to 23^rd, finishing with a 12-over par 228 (79-75-74). Iten also showed improvement each round after a rough start to finish 37^th with a 231 (77-78-76). Senior Drew Miller, meanwhile, shot a 236.  

The Govs displayed the tenacity that helped them win consecutive fall tournaments as they made up 12 strokes on Samford in the final round. When second-round play ended early Tuesday morning, the Govs were 21 shots off the pace, sitting in fifth. All that changed as Austin Peay came roaring back with a full team effort over the final 18 holes.

"These guys have an attitude of winning," said Kayden. "They expect to win every time they step on the course. We were able to cut down our three-putts during the final round and that's what made the difference. That, and we really took advantage of the par-5s."

Kayden's team now heads back to Clarksville before flying out to California, Friday, to prepare for the USF Triumph at Pauma Valley, hosted by San Francisco.

-AP-