BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. – Jacksonville State's Erik Jansson saved his best for last at the Gulf Coast Collegiate on Tuesday.
 
The junior from Vasteras, Sweden, tied his career-low with a final-round 68 on the par-72, 6,769-yard Pine Course at Diamondhead Country Club, catapulting himself into seventh place and leading the Jax State men's golf team to a second-place finish.
 
The Gamecocks' No. 1 player in the lineup made five birdies and just one bogey in Tuesday's final round to put the finishing touches on a 54-hole score of 219. He got progressively better over the three-round event, shooting a first-round 77 on Monday morning and a second-round 74 in the afternoon. His third 68 while wearing the Jax State logo helped his team stave off a late charge from co-host New Orleans and Southeastern Louisiana.
 
"I had a tough start to this tournament and putted very poorly," Jansson said. "I got frustrated and let a few too many get away from me. I got some help from coach (Michael) Brice on the putting green before the 3rd round and it paid off because the putting was a lot better the final round. I managed to turn the tournament around and ended up getting a top 10 finish which I am happy about."
 
Jax State shot a 54-hole total score of 885 in the event, nine shots behind winner North Alabama and four ahead of New Orleans in third place. SLU finished fourth with an 890, while Stephen F. Austin rounded out the top five in the 13-team field.

 
"We came into the tournament this week with a very clear goal," Jansson said after his final round. "This was our tournament to win. We came here confident that we were the best team in the field. So, we are off course a little disappointed that we fell short, but North Alabama played well the last round and managed to seal the victory. I'm confident that this team has a lot of potential and with some fine tuning we can beat any team." 
 
Jansson led the field of 72 players with 37 pars, coupled with seven birdies. His final round saw him make three of those birdies in a five-hole stretch from the eighth hole to Hole No. 12. The round also tied for the lowest 18-hole score of the tournament and tied for the second-lowest score in tournament history.
 
Sophomore Santiago Bailleres was just behind Jansson on the leaderboard, finishing eighth place with a 54-hole score of 221. The native of Carrientes, Argentina, used his second round on Monday to put himself in position. He opened with a morning 76 before an afternoon 2-under 70 put him in seventh before Tuesday's final round. He carded a 75 on Tuesday to finish one spot behind his teammate.
 
Redshirt sophomore Gabriel Restrepo, who worked his way into the Gamecocks' lineup as their No. 5 player, had a solid showing at the Gulf Coast Collegiate. The Caracas, Venenzuela, native shot an opening round 72 before a 79 on Monday afternoon. He finished strong on Tuesday with a final-round 73 that capped a 224 and left him in a tie for 12^th in the field.
 
Senior Ross Napier was the fourth Jax State golfer to finish in the top 20, claiming a tie for 16^th with a score of 226. The native of Hartselle, Ala., used rounds of 73-76-77 to post his score and had 33 pars over his 54 holes.
 
Rounding out the Gamecocks' lineup was junior Devin Speight, who finished tied for 37^th in his Jax State debut. A native of Mt. Juliet, Tenn., and a mid-year transfer from Trevecca Nazarene, he opened the event with an even-par 72 before shooting back-to-back rounds of 82 to cap his 234.
 
The Gamecocks will return to the links on March 9-11 at the Sea Palms Invitational in St. Simons Island, Ga. The 54-hole event will be played at the Sea Palms Resort and will be hosted by Western Carolina.