PALM CITY, Fla. – No. 10 SMU's Mac Meissner finished in a tie for fourth after battling for a final-round 71 to lead the men's golf team at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational. Meissner has finished no worse than 12^th in four stroke play events this year, and now has back-to-back top-five finishes.
 
Meissner had three birdies on the day, and finished the event at -6, six strokes behind individual winner Alex Fitzpatrick of Wake Forest. Meissner shot par-or-better in all three rounds of the tournament, and has avoided an over-par total in six consecutive rounds, dating back to March 7.
 
As a team, the Mustangs finished eighth in a field that included six of the top-10 teams in the nation. SMU finished the tournament at -2, and has finished under par in each of their last two events. No. 1 Florida State won the event at -21.
 
"It was a tough day today, but we will learn from it and move on," head coach Chris Parra said. "This will make us stronger for the postseason, where we have to stay focused on all 18 holes in every round."
 
Noah Goodwin, the reigning American Athletic Conference Golfer of the Week, finished in the top-25 for the fourth time in four events, tying for 11^th at -3 after a third-round 74. Goodwin co-led the field, along with his teammate Meissner, by playing the four par 5s at Floridian National Golf Club at -8 throughout the week. Goodwin had a team-high 15 birdies, helping SMU to 63 total for the event. Goodwin has finished three of his four events at even-par or better, and is -6 through 12 rounds this season.
 
Nathan Petronzio ended up at +3, narrowly missing this third top-25 finish at T-26^th. Petronzio birdied three holes, including the two par 5s on the back nine of the par 71 / 6,921-yard track, on the way to a Tuesday 78.
 
Ollie Osborne had a hot start, birdieing the first two holes, but finished tied for 43^rd at +9. Osborne shot a final-round 81. Prescott Butler shot a 5-over 76 to count towards the Mustangs' team total. Butler was tied for 59^th at +18.