Category: Golf

By Alex Wagner
Assistant Sports Editor

The men’s golf team had a strong finish at the Navy Invitational last weekend, ending up in a three-way tie for eighth out of 20 schools after especially strong play in the final round on Sunday.

Despite a steady downpour and windy conditions in Annapolis, Md., J.J. Szmadzinski ’13 and Pete Scialabba ’15 led the Bison to a strong finish on the second day of competition. Szmadzinski shot a 75, tying for the fifth-lowest score among 109 players, which gave him a 152-stroke total for the weekend and a spot in the nine-way tie for 20th place. Scialabba finished with the same amount of strokes by following his 74 on Saturday with a 78 on Sunday.

“Weathering the elements played a huge factor especially on the second day at Navy, with high winds and steady rain resulting in much higher scoring than usual,” Szmadzinski said.

Schuyler Stitzer ’14, Will Bachman ’12 and Billy Wright ’14 rounded out the weekend for the Orange and Blue with overall scores of 155, 158 and 162 respectively.

This strong group effort moved the team from 14th place Sunday morning to a tie for eighth by the end of the day.  Only Penn, Navy and George Washington outshot the Bison on Sunday, which is a remarkable feat considering the unfavorable weather conditions.

Penn came away with the overall win, beating second-place George Washington by four strokes. Max Marsico of Penn took the individual title, shooting just one over par for the entire weekend.

“This weekend’s tournament at Navy was an important preparation for the Patriot League Championship at Bucknell this upcoming weekend. Most of the other Patriot League schools were there so it gave us a preliminary indication of how we stack up going into next week,” Szmadzinski said.

The Bison finished 10 strokes behind Navy and one stroke behind Colgate. They tied Lafayette and beat Lehigh by nine strokes.

The 2012 Patriot League Championship will be held at the Bucknell Golf Club tomorrow and Sunday.

By Alex Wagner

Assistant Sports Editor

The men’s golf team had a consistent outing the past weekend, finishing eighth at the Manor Intercollegiate and in ninth at the Lafayette Invitational.

The first tournament was held at the Manor Resort in Farmville, Va. on Friday and Saturday. Will Bachman ’12 and Schuyler Stitzer ’14 were the top performers for the Orange and Blue, both finishing in a tie at 29th place, with 233 strokes overall.

Pete Scialabba ’15 was not far behind, finishing with just two more strokes and a tie for 36th. Dan Bernard ’13 and Jon Hartman ’13 rounded out the Bison’s finish with 237 strokes each and a tie for 41st place.

Unfortunately, the individual results did not stack up well, and the Bison ended up in eighth place out of 10 teams with a score of 928. Seton Hall finished the event in first with an overall team score of 880. Dylan Jensen of Longwood put in the best individual performance of 209 strokes.

The Lafayette Invitational, played on Sunday and Monday at the Northampton Country Club in Easton Pa., proved to be a more successful outing for the Orange and Blue. They showed their depth by bringing in five new players for the tournament and placing ninth out of 15 teams.

J.J. Szmadzinski ’13 and Patrick Hagerty ’15 led the way for the Bison, finishing in a tie for 23rd place. Szmadzinski’s high finish was due in part to a wonderful second day of play, in which he shot a 73, just one above par. This score was the eighth best for that day out of a pool of 84 players. Hagerty shot consistently well, with a 78 on Sunday and a 77 the day after.

Billy Wright ’14, Zach Pogust ’15 and Thomas Walter ’14 contributed to the strong team effort, finishing with scores of 156, 160 and 161, respectively.

Hofstra University finished in first place at the event, with an overall team score of 600, while Carter Rufe of Lafayette and Jeremy Foran of St. Francis (PA) tied for the top individual spot with 144.

The next action for the Bison will be the Navy Invitational on April 21.

By Scott Padula

Staff Writer

In its second tournament in as many weeks, the men’s golf team fought off 30-mile-per-hour winds and frigid temperatures en route to placing eighth out of 44 in the Wildcat Invitational in Malvern, Pa.

On Monday, the first day of action, the Bison battled the elements to shoot a team score of 320 in the first round. Captain Will Bachman ’12 led the Bison with a team-low of 78. Thomas Walter ’14 shot an 80 while Dan Bernard ’13 and Schuyler Stitzer ’14 both shot opening round 81s. Jon Hartman ’13 rounded out the Orange and Blue team with a score of 82 in his spring debut.

The Bison sharpened their game in the second round of the day, shooting a team score of 318. In the afternoon round, Stitzer broke Bachman’s team-low for the tournament by shooting a 76. Through 36 holes, Stitzer led the team with a score of 157. After his impressive 78 in the first round, Bachman followed up with a second-round score of 82. Other notable performances for the Bison came from Hartman and Bernard, who shot 79 and 81 respectively. After the second round of the tournament, the Orange and Blue sat in 11th place.

In the final round of the tournament on Tuesday, the Orange and Blue shot a team score of 307, allowing them to jump three places in the team standings. Hartman carded the best Bison score of the day with a three-over-par 74. Bernard and Stitzer recorded 77s, while Bachman and Walter tallied 79s. Stitzer led the team with four birdies. This final round was the first of the spring where all five Bison registered scores below 80.

“As long as we continue to practice with intensity and work on areas that need improvement, we will be prepared for Patriot Leagues. It is important to remember that golf is a strange sport where what happens one weekend in no way determines what will happen the next. All we can do as players is make the right decisions and continue to improve,” Stitzer said.

The Orange and Blue have a week off before they head to Farmville, Va. where they will compete in the Manor Intercollegiate on April 13 and 14.

By Scott Padula

Staff Writer

The men’s golf team kicked off its spring season at the Kingsmill Resort where they competed in the C&F Bank Invitational this past weekend. Represented by Will Bachman ’12, Dan Bernard ’13, Schuyler Stitzer ’14, Thomas Walter ’14 and Pete Scialabba ’15, the Orange and Blue placed 24th in a field of 29.

In wet conditions, Stitzer and Scialabba started the weekend strong for the Bison, both posting 75 in the first round. On the day, the Orange and Blue recorded a team score of 306 with contributions from Walter and Bernard who recorded a 77 and 79, respectively.

In the second day of action, the Orange and Blue shot a team score of 323. Fast winds and increasingly difficult conditions accounted for the 17-stroke difference between the first and second days. Again, Stitzer led the way for the Orange and Blue with a score of 80. Bachman, Bernard and Scialabba rounded out the official scorers for the Bison, each scoring an 81. By the end of the second round, the Orange and Blue fell to 26th place overall.

“A reoccurring theme for us this weekend was that several members of the team, myself included, had a difficult time finishing our rounds strong. As a result, the scores did not really reflect how well we played. I think going forward this season our goal is to work on course management decisions and eliminate mistakes that cost us unnecessary strokes,” Stitzer said.

To conclude the C&F Bank Invitational, the Bison registered a final-round 302; a score that pushed them back to 24th in the standings. Walter led all Bison with a season-best 74, while Stitzer finished with a 75 and the best score on the weekend with a 230. Bernard also posted a 75 on the day and Scialabba shot a 78.

“As a team, I thought we had a successful off-season and were more prepared for this event than we have been in years past. Nevertheless, I hope to see improvement in our final results. Hopefully we will continue to improve each tournament leading up to Patriot Leagues. Our competitive tournament schedule should help us prepare mentally and physically. By the time Patriot Leagues come around in April, we will be ready to win a championship,” Bachman said.

The Orange and Blue will head to Malvern, Pa. where they will compete in the Wildcat Invitational this weekend.