By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information

Battle Creek, MI---Freshman Luke Berger shot a two-day, three round 224 on Tuesday in the Region XII tournament to qualify for the NJCAA D-II National Tournament at Swan Lake Resort in Plymouth, IN on May 22-25.

On the first day, Berger shot a 76 and a 73, and then he shot a 75 on the third day to finish in 10th place at eight over par. Caleb Johnson of Muskegon finished in first with a 213 thanks to his second round 67.

As a team, the Express finished in fourth place with a 903. Mott CC finished in first with an 876, while Columbus State was second with an 897 and Muskegon was third with an 899. Nine teams participated in the regional tournament.

Berger's teammates all finished in the top 27. Kyle Simmons shot a 230 (t-23rd), Greg Hermes shot a 231 (t-25th), Cleo Trumbull shot a 231 (t-25th), Walter Dorosh shot a 232 (t-27th) and Darren Gessner shot a 232 (t-27th).

Mott and Columbus State qualified for the NJCAA D-II National Tournament. To qualify as an individual, Berger had to finish in the top six among golfers on teams not on Mott and Columbus State. He ended up fourth among non team qualifiers.

Berger, who was named to the All-Region XII team, becomes the third Express golfer to qualify for the national tournament. Jimmy Bell was the last golfer to do it in 2009, while Joey Bussdieker qualified in 2007. Bell finished in a tie for 29th place, while Bussdieker finished 15th at nationals. Bussdieker even made the NJCAA D-II All-Tournament Team.

As a team, the Express have qualified for nationals in 2006 and 2008.

OCCAC Honors

In addition to all that, the OCCAC announced their postseason honors. As a team, the Express finished second behind Columbus State. Berger and Simmons each got First Team All-OCCAC, while Gessner, Trumbull and Hermes received Second Team All-OCCAC honors.