Spartans Tie for First with Fairmont St. University
The Men's Golf team headed south to Ocean City, Maryland for their 7th Annual Spring Invitational tournament in hopes of improving on their performance during their trip to Puerto Rico. With all the rust shaken off, the Spartans came out of the gate rolling, firing an even 300 led by Freshman Chris Fitzpatrick's 2 under par 70. Nick Zolotas and Pat Schwarze added to the solid play with 75 and 76 respectively, while Brian Viola rounded out the scoring shooting 79. The Spartans found themselves trailing the NCAA East Regional Champion Fairmont State Falcons by 1 stroke after Day 1.
With day 2 came stiff winds and difficult scoring conditions. Nick Zolotas paved the way for the Spartans battling for a 2 over par 74. Chris Fitzpatrick and Pat Schwarze added to the charge posting 75 and 76 respectively. Senior captain Jordan Perretz bounced back from a difficult first day and rounded out the scoring with a 78. With Fairmont State posting a day 2 total of 304, the Spartans were on the door step of victory. After Pat Schwarze missed his birdie attempt on the 18th hole by inches, Chris Fitzpatrick had a 12-foot putt for the win. After narrowly missing his attempt, the Spartans of St. Thomas and Fairmont State finished with identical scores of 603 for the tournament.
Jonathan Carr of Nyack College was the top medalist with a 2-day score of 144 (70-74) while St. Thomas's Chris Fitzpatrick 145 (70-75) and Fairmont State's Will Gautreau 145 (69-75) tied for runner up. Nick Zolotas finished tied for 5th with a score of 149 (75-74) and Pat Schwarze finished in 8th place after a 152 (76-76).
Coach Ferrara was very pleased with the Spartans effort and attributes their success to their diligent work ethic and hard work while in Puerto Rico. "Most college players would want to get on a beach or go site-seeing. Our guys spent 10 hours at the course on Sunday, playing 27 holes, hitting balls and chipping and putting. It is obvious that they are committed to winning this year and determined to win the NCAA Super Regional tournament."
The Spartans are back in actions on April 5-7 at the Peter King Memorial tournament hosted by Dowling College. The Spartans look to defend their title from last year with another strong performance.
Chris Fitzpatrick