Palm Harbor, Fl. – The College of Coastal Georgia men's golf team earned an impressive third-place finish at the Invite at Innisbrook, hosted by Dalton State, in the greater Tampa area from September 28^th-29^th. Featuring a 20-team field that included eleven nationally-ranked programs, the Mariners rallied with strong second and third rounds to finish +26 for the tournament, trailing only Keiser and Reinhardt. Sophomore Gates Glanton led the way for Coastal Georgia, finishing fourth overall individually with a cumulative even-par score.  
 
After a slow opening round where the Mariners ended +15, Coastal Georgia rallied on day two with consecutive team rounds of +5 and +6 at the 7,209-yard Innisbrook Golf Course. The end result was a second-consecutive top three finish for the Mariners to begin their fall schedule. Setting the tone on Tuesday was Glanton, whose round two 67, good for four-under, tied for the best round of the entire tournament. Junior Jake Ackerman, a Tampa-native playing close to his hometown, recorded a top 15 finish. Coastal Georgia paced the entire field with a third-round +6.
 
"We had a slow start on the front nine, but they responded much better and held it together. We had a great start today and finished strong, the last two holes everybody was under par," NAIA Hall of Fame head coach Mike Cook explained. "This team has some potential. We have more than one good player and it's great to see somebody else lead the way. We finished third place and had a good week."
 
Glanton was one of just four players to end the tournament at even-par or better. In addition to his leading performance in round two, Glanton recorded an eagle on hole six on Monday morning. The Fortson-native was at even-par or better in 19 of his last 23 holes. In addition to Glanton and Ackerman, sophomore Ethan Arnold ended with a final round +2.
 
"Gates had the best college tournament of his career and a great round today. His iron game was good, he got it going, squared up his shoulders and knocked the flag straight down. He even held out with an iron for eagle," Cook nodded. "Jake had a great round today. Ethan had a decent day."  
 
Coastal Georgia will next compete at the TWU Bojangles Fall Invitational, with the Mariners set to finish their fall schedule at the Links at Kahiti on October 17^th-18 in Vonore, Tennessee.