POOLER, Ga. ? Georgia Southern battled back on the final nine holes to hold off Furman and Kennesaw State for the Mizuno Savannah Intercollegiate championship, played at the Savannah Quarters Country Club. The Eagles overall shot 865, one stroke better than Furman and five ahead of Kennesaw State.
The title was decided on the final nine holes. All three teams at one point took a share of the lead, but in the end Georgia Southern led the entire field on the par 4s and 5s throughout the tournament to key its second win of the fall.
Francis Marion (888) and Armstrong Atlantic (895) finished in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Old Dominion (897), Troy (906), Davidson (914), Western Carolina (919), Jacksonville (920), Elon (923), Winthrop (926) and Samford (933) rounded out the field.
The Eagles' title came after carding a final round 295 while Furman and Kennesaw both shot a 3-over 291. In addition to Blondell, Spencer Fulford (217) finished sixth while Drew Lethem (218) tied for seventh.
“Obviously this was a great win. You only play 10-12 tournament a year, so getting a team win is a big deal, especially considering the way we won,” said head coach Larry Mays. “We had a great first round, gave a few strokes back in the second round then Furman, Kennesaw (State) and us all traded the lead on the back nine. I think at one time we were down 7-8 strokes the last five holes but our guys did a great job stepping it up and getting the win.
“The win at Francis Marion was much different, we built such a big lead right from the beginning. Today there were hard conditions, the wind really started blowing. Our guys were under the gun and stepped up on the back nine, which is exactly the type of win we are going to need as the season goes along,” stated Mays.
Georgia Southern sophomore Logan Blondell won the individual championship after a thrilling two-hole playoff against Furman's Anthony Aloi. Blondell held a one-stroke lead heading into 18, but Aloi got a par and Blondell bogeyed the hole to force a playoff.
Both players sank a tricky par putt on the first playoff hole (playing #18 again). They played #18 for a third consecutive time, this time Aloi hit his drive into the water while Blondell got on the green in two and carded a birdie for his first collegiate championship. 
Blondell's championship marks the first individual title by an Eagle since Aron Price won three tournaments in 2005.
“Logan has been close throughout his career (third career ?Top 5' finish), so we were really pulling for him. He works really hard, and winning in a playoff scenario was a big boost for him,” said Mays. “Drew (Lethem) played solid all tournament long. He has been our steady player all season. Spencer (Fulford) got off to a bad start, sitting 7-over at the 11th tee, but from there he played 4-under and birdied the last three holes to really give us a boost. Give credit to Jordan (Johnstun) for coming back and shooting the low round for us today. He hew he didn't play well yesterday, so he came up to me today and said he wanted to come out and contribute. I think he birdied three of his last six holes.”
The Eagles will finish their fall season in two weeks competing at the Landfall Tradition in Wilmington, North Carolina on October 24-26.
Mizuno Savannah Intercollegiate
Par 72 - Yardage 7,016
1. Georgia Southern (278-292-295) 865 +1
2. Furman (288-287-291) 866 +2
3. Kennesaw State (298-281-291) 870 +6
4. Francis Marion (290-302-296) 888 +24
5. Armstrong Atlantic (298-300-297) 895 +31
6. Old Dominion (299-297-301) 897 +33
7. Troy (306-299-301) 906 +42
8. Davidson (304-305-305) 914 +50
9. Western Carolina (303-300-316) 919 +55
10. Jacksonville (305-301-314) 920 +56
11. Elon (301-308-314) 923 +59
12. Winthrop (316-299-311) 926 +62
13. Samford (308-314-311) 933 +69
?Top 20' Individuals
** 1. Logan Blondell, Georgia Southern (67-72-73) 212 -4
2. Anthony Aloi, Furman (70-73-69) 212 -4
T-3. Michael Tulacz, Kennesaw State (71-72-72) 215 -1
T-3. Chris Wolfe, Armstrong Atlantic (70-73-72) 215 -1
T-3. J.P. Putnam, Kennesaw State (78-68-69) 215 -1
6. Spencer Fulford, Georgia Southern (71-71-75) 217 +1
T-7. Jackson Taylor, Davidson (73-71-74) 218 +2
T-7. Drew Lethem, Georgia Southern (70-73-75) 218 +2
T-9. J.B. Murphy, Furman (74-72-73) 219 +3
T-9. Matt Hayes, Furman (72-73-74) 219 +3
T-11. Jeff Karlsson, Kennesaw State (78-69-73) 220 +4
T-11. Neil Henderson, Old Dominion (74-74-72) 220 +4
T-13. Matt Motes, Armstrong Atlantic (75-72-74) 221 +5
T-13. Keith Crowley, Francis Marion (68-79-74) 221 +5
T-15. Peter McGibney, Francis Marion (77-71-74) 222 +6
T-15. Jon Wingate, Armstrong Atlantic (76-78-68) 222 +6
T-17. Tom Wilde, Old Dominion (74-74-75) 223 +7
T-17. Michael McGrady, Troy (74-73-76) 223 +7
T-17. Jonathan Bowden, Furman (72-76-75) 223 +7
T-20. Jordan Johnstun, Georgia Southern (76-76-72) 224 +8
T-20. *Bobby Baird, Samford (75-72-77) 224 +8
** Won individual title in playoff (2nd hole)
* Competed as an individual, did not count in team scoring
