Sam Meek of the SIU men's golf team takes a swing during a tournament earlier this year. | www.siusalukis.com
Sam Meek of the SIU men's golf team takes a swing during a tournament earlier this year. | www.siusalukis.com
When Justin Fetcho first took over as head coach of the Southern Illinois University men’s golf team in 2014, the Salukis were ranked 233rd nationally.
Three years and a lot of ratings climbing later, the Salukis ended this season in the 159th spot. Along the way, Fetcho, a native of Eldorado, took the team to 209th in 2015, then 184th in 2016, when SIU won its first Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) title.
Four SIU golfers were named MVC Golfer of the Week this year. Frankie Thomas shot a 64 at the team's first tournament this year, which tied the school record for lowest round, and freshman Sam Meek achieved the team's lowest score in the conference tournament.
Fetcho is the school's 10th head coach and previously worked as the assistant coach of the University of Illinois golf team. He has also been an interim head coach at the University of Oregon, and is a graduate of the University of South Florida
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