After two rounds of competition on Sunday, April 7 and Monday, 8, the men’s golf team finished in second place at The Hershey Cup. Shooting a collective 616 (+48) for the tournament, the ‘Jackets were 12 strokes better on the second day than the first. Nationally-ranked St. John Fisher separated itself on the second day, assuring its victory with a score of 604 (+36).
“The East course at Hershey Country Club is a great golf course and we look forward to playing there every year,” senior Marc Youngentob said. “It is an extremely tough, yet fun test of golf.”
The first round ended with junior Nick Palladino tied for the lead with a 75 (+4). Other notables on the first day were freshman Dominick Schumacher who shot a 78 (+7) and junior Will Mallia with a 79 (+8).
The team averaged exactly par, or five strokes, on every par-5 hole on the course.
The second round brought even more success for the ‘Jackets, whose top-five golfers shot below an 80.
Palladino, third team all-american the past two years, continued his stellar performance with a 73 (+2). He led the tournament in par-5 scoring, shooting a three under par on those holes. In addition, he finished with seven birdies, second only to the tournament winner, Swarthmore’s Andrew Park, who had nine.
Palladino finished third overall with a combined score of 148 (+6). Mallia shot a season-best 154 (+12), earning him a tie for tenth place. Freshman George VanderZwaag had the greatest improvement of any ‘Jacket between the two rounds, cutting six strokes to shoot a 76 (+5).
Youngentob also dropped his score in the second round, shooting a 78 (+7).
“The team had a respectable second place finish,” Youngentob said. “We are always looking to put ourselves in a position to win, just fell a little bit short on day two of the tournament.”
Despite their second-place status, Youngentob remains optimistic about their next game.
“We are certainly looking forward to the NYU Invitational this weekend, and then The Kravetz, which we host at Oak Hill Country Club. [We have] the intention of adding another win to our schedule,” he continued.
Brady is a member of the class of 2015.
