From left, Northern Michigan University golfers Haley Bolander, Olivia Brill and Gabriella Moreau pose for a university photo. (Photo courtesy NMU)

MARQUETTE — After competing separately several times in September, the men’s and women’s golf teams at Northern Michigan University will compete together — in their own meets, of course — at the Flyer Fall Intercollegiate at Cog Hill Golf and Country Club in Lemont, Illinois, on Monday and Tuesday.

Hosted by Lewis University, this is the second-to-last event of the fall season for both Wildcat teams, to be followed by what is being called the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Preview meet, the Panther Invitational hosted by Davenport in downstate Augusta next Friday and Saturday. Just about all league teams will be there.

The NMU men are coming off a great start at the Motor City Shakedown in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn at the beginning of this week, while the Northern women had several good individual performances at last week’s Bulldog Fall Classic in downstate Big Rapids.

Here are previews and reviews of recent action for each team:

Men’s squad

The Wildcats were in a small, but quite competitive field in Dearborn, finishing fourth of five teams with 921, or 57-over-par for three rounds. But that total was just five strokes over the 10th-best three-round total in program history.

And Northern’s opening round of 7-over 295 left it in second place at the time before it was followed up by rounds of 28-over and 22-over.

The team’s 15 birdies in that opening round does place 10th in program history for a team single round.

Tourney host Wayne State, which started six strokes behind NMU after the first round, got hot and was only 2-over for the final two rounds combined to win with 879, five strokes ahead of runner-up Davenport’s 884.

Roosevelt was third, just six ahead of Northern at 915, while Purdue Northwest was fifth, 10 behind the Wildcats at 931.

Leading NMU was Westwood High School graduate Tyler Annala, who shot a 12-over 228 on rounds of 1-under 71, 79 and 78. He tied for 14th individually.

Not only did he shoot under par in his first round, he fired in four birdies without a bogey in his first six holes, finishing with a half dozen that day to match the number of birdies he had at the same tournament on the exact same day last season. Both of those feats are one short of NMU’s record in an individual round.

Annala, who was in second place after the opening round, finished with a dozen birdies in his three rounds, second-most in the field and third-most in Northern history.

But depth was at least as important as Annala’s feats at this event, as Wildcat teammates Arthur Ylitalo and Levi Pennala each finished one stroke higher than Annala with 13-over 229s to tie for 17th. Ylitalo had rounds of even-par 72, 79 and 78, while Pennala shot 75, 77 and 77.

Ylitalo put in five birdies in his opening round, including three in the first four holes, and was tied for third after that round. He finished his three rounds with nine birdies.

He and Annala tied for the team’s best scoring on par-5s in the three rounds with a 4.92-stroke average as each combined to shoot 1-under on those longest of holes.

Pennala led NMU with 37 pars and a 3.08 average on par-3s, a combined 1-over on them, and had five birdies total.

Harvey Ylitalo tied for 22nd with a 20-over 236 on rounds of 83, 74 and 79. He was top 10 in the field in par-3 scoring at 3.17 and total pars with 32.

Jacob Daavettila, another five strokes back at 25-over 241 and 28th, did something none of his teammates could do — he carded an eagle in his opening round 77 before he added 85 and 79.

He recorded a 3 on the par-5, 556-yard 17th hole for the 15th eagle in Northern history and first of his own career.

And Brady Badker finished in 33rd with a 32-over 248 on rounds of 83, 82 and 83 as he was third on the team in par-5 scoring at 5.08, a cumulative 1-over on them.

At the upcoming Flyer meet, McKendree is considered the best team entering with a national ranking of No. 85 along with No. 11 in the region. Other ranked squads are William Jewell College and host Lewis, while from the GLIAC will also be Purdue NW, Roosevelt and Wisconsin-Parkside.

From NCAA Division III will be ranked teams Trine and Wheaton, and from the National Junior College Athletic Association will be national No. 5 Kirkwood College.

Temperatures are expected to be in the low 80s with 10 mph winds on Monday, then cooling to the low 70s and the same wind, but 40% chance of rain Tuesday.

Last season at this meet, NMU finished 13th of 17 teams at 59-over in two rounds. Annala led the Wildcats in 33rd place with 13-over, while Arthur Ylitalo was 73rd at 22-over. Pennala was 36th at 14-over competing as an individual.

Women’s squad

The Wildcats couldn’t overcome any other teams at the Bulldog Fall Classic hosted by Ferris State a week ago, though they came fairly close. Their 104-over-par 680 for two rounds was five strokes shy of 12th-place Kentucky Wesleyan, 20 strokes behind St. Mary’s (Indiana) and 23 strokes in arrears to Purdue Northwest.

NMU improved 18 strokes from the first round to the second, going from 349 to 331.

Maddy Martens led Northern, as she finished in a tie for 44th place with an 18-over 162 on rounds of 83 and 79. In her second round, NMU’s best individual single round, she started slow at 5-over after six holes but was even-par over the next 10, with a birdie, bogey and eight pars.

Right behind her tied for 54th was Abbie Pietila with a 21-over 165 with 83 and 82, while Payton Donnelly was 69th with a 32-over 176 on 90 and 86, then Aavra Relich tied for 71st with 33-over 177 on 93 and 84.

Playing unattached were NMU’s Gabriella Moreau in 79th with a 41-over 185 on 94 and 91 and Olivia Brill tied for 81st with a 44-over 188 on 94 and 94. And Northern’s Abby Luke was 83rd with a 52-over 196 on 96 and 100.

This Flyer Fall Intercollegiate field will includes just about the same teams as the men’s tournament, the leading one nationally being Davenport at No. 75 in the nation and No. 10 in the Midwest. Purdue NW, Parkside, host Lewis, William Jewell and Quincy are also ranked.

Last year at this event, the Wildcats finished eighth among 10 teams, with Hailey Bolander leading the way in 19th place at 18-over, Martens 31st, Pietila 38th and Moreau 53rd.

Story contents based on Northern Michigan University Sports Information press release reviewing and previewing meets. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.