GODFREY – The first-round dominance of defending champion John A. Logan on Sunday and the plight of runner-up Illinois Central left Rend Lake College satisfied with a less-than-stellar third-place showing in the Region XXIV Division II Men’s Golf Championship.

Heavy rainfall and unplayable conditions wiped out Monday’s final 18 holes and made the Sunday totals final.

“The superintendent shut the golf course down. After it had rained off and on all morning, it hit real hard again around 10:30. The fairways were flooded in places and many of the greens were not playable. He had no choice,” RLC Coach Dave Smith explained.

The Vols gained complete command as a result of Sunday’s composite, four-player total of one-over par 289 thanks to three of the top four individual scores at Lockhaven Country Club. Their lead was 13 strokes over ICC and 18 better than the RLC Warriors.

Kenneth Glen set a blistering pace under ideal playing conditions for his teammates, who were almost equal to the task. Glen’s 35-34–69 beat par and his nearest competitors by three shots, with Volunteer Daniel Tomlin (36-36) and ICC’s Tom Ackerman (35-37) tied at 72 and Logan’s Justin Fetcho fourth at 38-35–73.

Go figure. Illinois Central was never under any pressure to win. The Cougars will be the host team for this spring’s National Junior College Athletic Association D-II Championship, even though it will be held at Goose Pond Colony in Scottsboro, AL (there are no local contenders close to the site recommended by ICC), so they already had an automatic berth secured.

A realistic Rend Lake College squad Monday might have hoped to overcome Illinois Central for second, at best, or at worst maintain its hold on third and still gain the final qualifying spot for the NJCAA Finals. Region XXIV boasts the required minimum field of 10 to receive two team invitations to the spring finale. The five best individuals not on the two top teams and ICC also advance.

Instead, Rend Lake College settled for third on paper, second in qialifying and will advance to next spring’s nationals after a two-year absence. The Warriors had made eight straight NJCAA Championship appearances before the recent slump.

Sophomore Charlie Throgmorton (West Paducah, KY / Heath High school) finished in the No. 5 spot among all golfers following his nine-hole scores of 37-37 and 74 total.

Bo Bolton was next at 36-39–75 to round out scores that counted for John A. Logan, with fifth-man James Petrea not figuring in the scoring with his 40-39–79.

Throgmorton and the Warriors were supported by 77s from two other veterans, John Singleton (Moreton, England) at 38-39 and local favorite Brian Kuddes (Godfrey / Alton Senior H.S.) at 36-41. Freshman R.A. Stolpe (Muskego, WI) chipped in with a 37-42–79, while Freshman Lucas Cromeenes (Metropolis / Massac County H.S.) was not able to help with his 41-43–83.

“Apparently, we don’t putt very well,” said a disappointed RLC Coach Dave Smith. “I watched them (the frontrunning Volunteers) make putts all day, and I watched the five of us miss putts all day. The greens were lightning fast and it kills us.”

“That’s ‘career,’ ” Smith said of the 289 Logan total, “and a good time for it. You can’t take anything away from them. They earned it.

“We are just fortunate to be in the position we are in. Parkland did not play well at all and Danville Area is much better than they showed, also. It was just one of those days nobody played well except for Logan, and they played very well.”

Final team standings after 18 holes with no more to play – 1. John A. Logan, 289; 2. Illinois Central, 302; 3. Rend Lake College, 307; 4. Danville Area, 312; 5. Parkland, 317; 6. Lincoln, 318; 7. Kaskaskia, 320; 8. Southwestern Illinois, 324; 9. John Wood, 327; 10. Springfield, 335; 11. Lewis and Clark, 337.

“I would just like to get out of here alive (and advance),” Smith commented Sunday evening.

The weather helped make that wish come true on Monday.