Bemidji State runs away with home invite behind Logan Schoepp’s record-breaking round

BEMIDJI – Prior to Monday, Logan Schoepp’s personal-best round was a 64 on a par 69.

The Bemidji State men’s golf senior entered his last campaign with the Beavers less than six months removed from his

wire-to-wire individual win at the NSIC Tournament

last spring. He went into his final collegiate tournament at the Bemidji Town and Country Club with a chip on his shoulder.

Schoepp carded a 64 on a par 71 on Monday at the Bemidji State Invitational. It broke the Beavers’ program for the best score in an individual round by three strokes.

He backed it up with a 70 in his second round, beating the rest of the field by at least six strokes.

“Earlier last week in qualifying, I was so close that I felt like I was going to break through and just go,” Schoepp said. “That’s exactly what happened. I made very few mistakes. No bogeyes, obviously. Some of the guys called in an unconventional 64 because I didn’t do great on Nos. 9 and 10, and that’s where you make some hay.”

Schoepp went into the turn on Monday four-under par, with birdies on Nos. 2 and 8 with an eagle on No. 4. He finished his round with birdies on three of the last seven holes.

On Tuesday, Schoepp was one-under par at the turn. He made par on his final seven holes to win his second consecutive collegiate competition.

“When you shoot something like a 64, it’s just different going into the next day,” Schoepp said. “It’s about maintaining what you did and picking spots to be aggressive. You do that, you’ll help your team close it out.”

BSU’s first-year head coach Ben Corbid was once teammates with Schoepp during the 2022-23 season. They each had a hand in winning the team NSIC Tournament championship.

Now, Corbid is at the helm, and Schoepp is leading the way on the links.

“It’s a calm confidence with him,” Corbid said. “He’s not a flashy guy; he won’t go out there and be rambunctious on the course. He’s a guy who stays steady and trusts his game. Some days they drop, and when it starts rolling for him, he’s deadly.

“Carding a 64 on a par 71, which is usually a 72, and annihilating the single-round program record by three strokes, it’s not something I saw coming, but I’m glad he did it.”

If it weren’t for Schoepp, a pair of Beavers would’ve been in a three-way tie for the win with Concordia-St. Paul’s Chase Camilli at two-under par.

Madelyn Haasken / Bemidji Pioneer

Teagan Laplante shot back-to-back 70s on Monday and Tuesday with seven birdies and an eagle in 36 holes.

“Teagan was steady,” Corbid said. “His ball striking was phenomenal. He drove the ball so well. He hit his irons so well. His wedges were great. He’ll say it, too; he left a few out there with the putter. It gets me excited to see what the possibilities are with him because his low end is really low.”

Freshman Julius Arenkiel also shot a 140. He was one-over par on Monday before going three-under par on Tuesday. Arenkiel made seven birdies at the BTCC during his second round.

“He just loves it,” Corbid said. “This is our first time seeing him in full competition mode. He just loves competing. The grin on his face when you say hi to him on a par three, he’s just smiling ear to ear. It kind of brings you some love for the game. He works so hard, and he deserves this fully.”

As a team, Bemidji State finished nine-under par, which was 20 strokes better than Concordia-St. Paul, 24 strokes better than Minnesota State and 25 strokes better than Augustana.

Madelyn Haasken / Bemidji Pioneer

“It’s good to prove some people wrong,” Schoepp said. “We had a good field here, with CSP, Mankato and (Augustana). It makes a difference when the teams you’re playing against are good and you come out of it with a big win.”

Corbid’s B-team finished in fifth place at 22-over par. Cullen Ryan finished even par in both rounds to place fifth individually.

“The guys are pushing each other hard right now,” Corbid said. “They’re gunning for each other. You want your teammates to win, but you also want to beat them. Internal competition makes you strong. There’s multiple guys I could see being in our top five. I could play multiple guys and dig into the bench to find a really good player at any moment.”

In shifting coaches from Ekren Miller to Corbid, BSU’s depth luxury is still abundant.

Madelyn Haasken / Bemidji Pioneer

“You basically spend nine tournaments finding the five guys who are going to get it done,” Corbid said. “Having so many people where, if a guy’s in a slump, I got a guy right behind him who will pick up the slack.”

For Corbid, his wait for his first win as Bemidji State’s head coach was brief. He

took over for Miller in August,

having spent two years as his assistant.

“This is an unprecedented circumstance, for sure,” Corbid said. “It gets me excited, but it didn’t surprise me that we were right there. These guys were ready to go and excited to play. It doesn’t surprise me to see a win right out of the gate. But man, does it feel good to get that win and the camaraderie that comes with it right away.”

The Bemidji State women’s golf team

stood in ninth place

after Monday’s opening round. The Beavers jumped to seventh place on the second day behind a standout performance from Sara Sroga.

After carding a 22-over-par round of 93 on Monday, Sroga finished the tournament with a round of 85, good enough to finish at 34-over par in 24th place.

Abigail Turkowski finished in 26th, just two strokes behind Sroga. Lauren and Haylee Kammann shot 181 and 182, respectively. Bailey Tilley (206, 49th), Isabella Depew (199, 46th) and Nakomis Mitchell (221, 51st) rounded out the day for the Beavers.

Concordia-St. Paul won the meet at 90-over par, which was four strokes better than Minnesota Crookston and five shots better than U-Mary.