JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – On Monday and Tuesday, Milligan's No. 17-ranked women's golf team and the men's golf team hosted the annual East Tennessee Collegiate, a two-day, 36-hole event at Johnson City Country Club. The women's field featured Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) foe Bryan and non-conference Johnson & Wales Charlotte as the three teams represented, while the men's tournament welcomed a competitive 14-team field that included AAC opponents Pikeville, Montreat, Johnson, Truett McConnell, Bluefield, Union Commonwealth and Bryan.

Milligan enjoyed a strong showing on their home course, with the Buff women capturing the team title and the men's squad finishing second in a tightly contested race on day two with Roan State Community College. The women's team posted a 64-over-par score to finish first among three teams, while the men's team combined to shoot 13-under par and finished just one stroke behind team champion Roane State.

Individually, Milligan claimed both medalist honors as Francisco De Bethencourt led the men's field and Tessa Wilck topped the women's leaderboard. Aidan Sinclair added a third-place finish for the Buff men to earn All-Tournament Team honors, while Bailey McGaha, Madison Butler, Addie Goolsby and Pernilla Sühl finished second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively, giving Milligan five members of the Women's All-Tournament Team.

Tessa Wilck earned medalist honors after posting back-to-back rounds of 78. In Monday's opening round, she navigated the course by recording pars on 10 holes and closing with a birdie to finish at six-over. The second round was much more up and down, as Wilck carded three birdies along with a pair of double bogeys, but she once again took the same 78 strokes. Her consistent play over both days resulted in a tournament-winning total of 156 (+12), allowing her to hold off a strong challenge from her fellow Buffs atop the leaderboard.

Bailey McGaha followed closely behind Wilck, earning runner-up honors with a 36-hole total of 158 (+14). McGaha opened the tournament with a six-over-par 78, highlighted by three birdies. She returned to the course on Tuesday and delivered a steady round, avoiding anything worse than a bogey across all 18 holes, carding an 80 in the final round to secure second place in the individual standings.

Madison Butler completed Milligan's sweep of the top three spots in the individual standings with a third-place finish. Butler matched  Wilck and McGaha in the opening round with a six-over-par 78. She followed with an 83 in the final round to close the tournament at 17-over par with a 36-hole total of 161 strokes.

The final counting score toward Milligan's team top placement came courtesy of freshman Addie Goolsby, whose consistent swing produced an opening-round 83 (+11) and a final-round 80 (+8). Goolsby finished the 36-hole event with a total score of 163 (+19), which was good for fourth place.

Freshman Pernilla Sühl showed steady improvement throughout the tournament, securing a fifth-place finish with a 36-hole total of 165 (+21). Sühl opened the event with a 13-over-par 85 in the first round before bouncing back with an eight-over-par 80 on Tuesday, shaving five strokes off her opening-round score to climb the leaderboard and earn a top-five finish.

Layla Fox opened the tournament with a 96 in the first round before turning in one of the team's biggest improvements on day two, as she trimmed 11 strokes from her opening-round score, carding an 85 (+13) in the final round to close the 36-hole event.

Kathryn Jackson rounded out Milligan's lineup and also improved across the two days, taking eight less strokes in her second round.

The Milligan men separated themselves from the majority of the field, as they finished 10 strokes ahead of second place Pikeville. However, in the final round of the tournament Roane State challenged Milligan for the top team placement. In the end, it came down to final three holes and the Buffs finished just one stroke behind Roane State for a second place finish.

Francisco de Bethencourt claimed medalist honors in the men's field with a two-round score of 9-under-par 135, highlighted by rounds of 66 and 69. De Bethencourt lit up his home course in the opening round, carding eight birdies on his way to a six-under-par 66. His opening-round score finished just one stroke shy of Milligan's 18-hole program record of 65, set by Blake Howard in 2010. De Bethencourt followed his near-record-setting performance with a three-under-par 69 on Tuesday to secure the individual title and lead the Buffs to a runner-up team finish. His 36-hole total of 135 strokes finished just one stroke shy of Milligan's program record for 36 holes that was also set by Howard in 2010.

Aidan Sinclair secured a third-place finish with a 36-hole total of 137 (-7). Sinclair was also dialed in during the opening round, highlighted by a four-hole stretch on the back nine in which he played holes 13 through 16 at a combined five-under par with an eagle and three birdies. He carried that momentum into day two, recording five birdies on his way to a two-under-par 70 to lock up third place and earn All-Tournament Team honors.

Hugo Lundberg finished T-11th overall with a 36-hole total of 144 (E). Lundberg opened the tournament with a two-under-par 70 before carding a two-over-par 74 in the final round. He was particularly strong on the front nine at Johnson City Country Club, playing holes one through nine to the tune of a combined three-under par across the two-day event.
Freshman Carson Murphy provided the final counting score for the Buffs, finishing 26th overall with a 36-hole total of 147 (+3). Murphy fired his first sub-70 round in the orange and black on Monday, carding a three-under-par 69 in the opening round. He followed that performance with a six-over-par 78 on day two to finish the tournament at three-over par.

Evan Caldwell added Milligan's alternate score, placing 44th with a 36-hole total of 153 (+9), while Caden Richardson competed as an individual and finished 62nd overall with a score of 158 (+14).

Hjalmar Liljenberg paced Milligan's B Team with an impressive performance, tying Hugo Lundberg for 11th place at even par with a 36-hole score of 144. 
 
Head Golf Coach Tony Wallingford had this to say about the event:  "It's always great to be able to host a quality tournament at your home course. Special thanks to the folks at Johnson City Country club for their hospitality. Both our men's and women's teams were outstanding this week. They played and competed well. Also, very proud of our two medalists, Francisco DeBethencourt with an impressive 9 under par two day total, and Tessa Wilck, who turned in two solid rounds of 78. We're improving. I'm excited for them."

The Milligan men will return to the links on Oct. 5-6 when they tee it up at the Music City Collegiate, hosted by Cumberland University at Greystone Golf Club. The No. 17 Milligan women will return to action on Oct. 12-13, traveling to Richmond, Ky., for The Battle at Gibson Bay Invitational, hosted by Lindsey Wilson University.

Women's RESULTS
Men's RESULTS