Tigers' swings heat up in warmer South

The men's golf team prolonged the summer weather for one more week as it escaped the autumn chill over Fall Break. Princeton competed in Old Dominion's Seascape Invitational in Kitty Hawk, N.C., and continued on to Jacksonville, Fla., to train with alumni. In Kitty Hawk, the Tigers placed ninth out of a 21-team field, their third best finish of the fall season. Freshman Evan Harmeling placed the highest for Princeton, tying for fifth.

"We did all right," sophomore Jake Skinner said. "It was a good finish to the fall season for our team."

Since the Tigers have not traveled to this tournament in the last few years, Princeton competed against some teams that it doesn't typically see in the field, including many Southern universities. Princeton was the only Ivy League team in the tournament, so it did not get a chance to measure itself one last time against its traditional rivals.

"It wasn't really a good tournament in which to measure ourselves against other teams," Skinner said. "There were no other Ivies, and we consistently beat St. Joseph's. They were the only team that we usually play, so it wasn't really a test."

The Tigers struggled during the first round against strong ocean winds and were in 12th place after the first day. The weather calmed on the second day, which helped to turn the tournament around for Princeton. Four of five squad members improved their scores, while senior Drew Maliniak maintained a two over 72.

Harmeling scored a 71 and 68 to finish at one under for the tournament. It was his best finish so far at Princeton.

"Evan [Harmeling] played really well," Skinner said. "He got into a groove and was ready to go this week. He played well this season, and all of a sudden he broke out. He's a good player, so we knew he had it in him."

Maliniak placed 20th with a pair of 72s, and junior Max Schechter tied for 33rd with a 77 and 70. Rounding out the squad were sophomore Juan Candela in a tie for 87th and Skinner, still injured, at 98th.

The Tigers finished their Fall Break in Jacksonville, training with alumni. They have no more tournaments this fall and will resume competition in March.

The women's golf team, which has not placed lower than second the entire season, was not able to continue its strong performance for its final tournament this fall. Princeton finished 18th out of 20 teams at the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate in Kiawah Island, S.C.

The Tigers were unable to find their rhythm and quickly found themselves near the bottom of the field. After the first two rounds, Princeton was in 17th place. The second round was interrupted Monday evening due to darkness with players still on the back nine. The field resumed the second round and continued onto the third round Tuesday. The Tigers were not fazed by the interruption on the whole, though, as they posted consistent scores throughout the weekend.

Junior Susannah Aboff and senior Annika Welander were Princeton's top finishers, tying for 38th. They were 20 over with scores of 77-78-81 and 79-77-80, respectively. Next up were junior Marlowe Boukis and freshman Kate Scarpetta, who tied for 83rd. Sophomore Michelle Grilli tied for 87th.

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East Carolina University won the field at 42 over, followed closely by the University of Nebraska at 45 over. Princeton was the only Ivy in the field.

The women will resume tournament play in the spring.