ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. (February 4, 2025) – The University of North Alabama men's golf team placed seventh at the Sea Best Invitational on Tuesday at the Atlantic Beach Country Club in Atlantic Beach, Fla. 

The Lions slipped to seventh after their highest round score of the tournament of 289. North Alabama totaled an eight-over-par 860 as a team in Florida, falling one point shy of Kennesaw State in sixth who had 859. Sophomore Andrew Ferworn led the Lions tied for ninth with an individual score of 210 for the three rounds. Ferworn's total lands him at 20th all-time for a three round individual tournament total during the Division I era with a 68-68-74. 

A lot like yesterday, the field stayed strong with Texas A&M and FGCU as the only teams to finish under par. The Aggies finished 26-under for the tournament and seven-under for the day, winning the team and individual crown. Phichaksn Maichon led the way the entire two-day event, finishing with an 11-under-par 202.

As Texas A&M finished in first, FGCU notched second place. After that, Florida Atlantic, UNCW, Lipscomb and Kennesaw State round out those above North Alabama, respectively. UNA beat out host team and ASUN foe Jacksonville by 12 strokes in eighth. Louisiana Tech, UCF, USC Upstate and Queens round out the rest of the field. 

Ferworn was the only top 10 finisher from a team outside the top four. Five Texas A&M players highlight the top 10, as well as players from FAU, FGCU and UNCW. Two University of Florida individual participants landed in the top 10, as well. 

The Lions finished with 16 birdies in round three and one eagle; the 16 birdies were identical to the first two rounds. Junior Sebastian Bengtsson posted six birdies, equaling his total from the first two rounds which helped jump him four spots to 23rd. All three of Bengtsson, junior Xing Leo and junior Blake Henriques improved their positioning in the final round. Both Luo and Henriques finish one-over on the day for a score of 72 that moved them up tied for 33rd and 42nd, respectively. 

Henriques was steady as he birdie once and bogeyed twice before completing the rest of the holes for par. Junior Corey Maher secured the lone eagle for the third round while grabbing two other birdies to finish tied for 65th. 

"We have to learn from this week," said The Schmitz Family Head Men's Golf Coach, Austin Phillips. "This week was not acceptable for our standard, and we will need to make some adjustments. We made the birdies we needed but made a lot of huge numbers which is uncharacteristic for us. We will be back and we will work hard. We have a lot of season to go."

UNA will compete in the Seminole Intercollegiate March 10-11 hosted by Florida State at Glen Arven Country Club in Thomasville, Ga.

Sea Best Invitational 
Atlantic Beach Country Club

Team Leaderboard
1. Texas A&M                826    -26
2. FGCU                        833    -19
3. FAU                           841    -11
4. UNCW                       847    -5
5. Lipscomb                   855    +3
6. Kennesaw State        859    +7
7. North Alabama          860    +8
8. Jacksonville               872    +20
T9. Louisiana Tech        879     +27
T9. UCF                        879    +27
11. USC Upstate           886    +34
12. Queens                   891    +39

North Alabama Golfers
T9. Andrew Ferworn           210 | -3
23. Sebastian Bengtsson    214 | +1        
T33. Xing Luo                     217 | +4
T42. Blake Henriques         219 | +6
T65. Corey Maher              227 | +14

For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.