NEWTON, Kan. – The Wichita State men's golf team is set to host their lone home tournament of the season next week at Sand Creek Station Golf Course in Newton, Kansas.
 
Head men's golf coach Judd Easterling is very excited that his team will be playing at home for the first and only time this year.
 
"It's going to be nice to sleep in our own beds and just get up and drive 20 minutes to get to the course," said Easterling. "There's going to be a good sense of comfort for us at Sand Creek since it's close to home and we've played there a lot this year already."
 
All nine Shockers on the 2023-24 roster will compete in this tournament. Zach Sokolosky, Aston Castillo, Blake Lorenz, Michael Winslow, and Ty Adkins will be in the Shocker starting lineup, while Adam Balatka, Conner Geist, Tate Herrenbruck, and Lucas Scheufler will all compete as individuals.

"I'm very greatful to be able to play host to this tournament at Sand Creek Station," said Easterling. "Chris Tuohey, who is the director of golf at Sand Creek, has done a tremendous job getting this tournament set up for us and we thank him all his hard work."

Five teams who competed in the first annual Grier Jones Shocker Invitational are set to return for the second go around, with ten newcomers joining the field this year.

Last year, the Shockers defended their home turf, winning the team title by four strokes over second place Utah Valley to claim their first tournament championship since 2019. 

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Fast Facts – Grier Jones Shocker Invitational
Dates: Monday-Tuesday, Oct. 9-10, 2023
Host: Wichita State University 
Location: Newton, Kansas (Sand Creek Station Golf Course)
Yardage: 7,187 Yards
Par: 72
Format: 54 Holes (36 first day, 18 second day)
Live Scoring: Golfstat
The Field: 15 teams, *Oklahoma State competing as individuals only.
Air Force, Abilene Christian, Denver, Drake, Hutchinson CC, Missouri State, La Salle, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma State*, Rice, Seton Hall, SIUE, Texas-Arlington, Texas A&M – Commerce, Texas – Rio Grande Valley, and Wichita State

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Shocker Five:
Zach Sokolosky (Sr.) – Transfer from University of Kansas…Competing in third event as a Shocker…Posted t-5^th place finish last week at Big O Classic
 
Aston Castillo (Jr.) – Second year Shocker…Transferred from Midland College (TX)…Competing in second event of the year…
 
Blake Lorenz (Sr.) – All-Conference returner for the Shockers…Second season with Wichita State…Competing in third event of the yar
 
Michael Winslow (Jr.) – Third year Shocker…Finished as runner-up in both the Kansas Amateur and Missouri Amateur golf tournaments this summer.

Ty Adkins (Fr.) – First year Shocker competing in first event in the lineup...Finished t-39^th competing as an individual at Big O Classic last week
 
Next Up:
The Shockers will travel internationally for the first of two times this year, this time heading to Paradise Island in the Bahamas to compete in the White Sands NCAA Bahamas Invitational from October 20^th to October 22^nd.