Golf: Both home and away, men’s and women’s squads clinch second-place weekend finishes

The men’s golf team traveled to Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, N.Y., this weekend to compete in the McLaughlin Invitational, which was hosted by St. John’s University. The Tigers played two rounds on Friday and one on Saturday on the par-70, 6,734-yard Red Course. At the same facility that hosted the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Open championships, the Tigers played to an exciting second-place finish in a field of 15 teams.

The Tigers competed against fellow Ivy Leaguers Dartmouth and Harvard, as well as Hofstra, Iona, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Johnson & Wales, Loyola, Rutgers, Sacred Heart, St. John’s, St. Thomas, Temple, Villanova and West Florida.

After playing to a one-shot lead on Friday, the Tigers finished second, two strokes behind West Florida.

“The tournament went really well,” senior Eric Salazar said. “We set a school record in the second round, carding an 8-under round of 272, and finished at even par for the tournament, which is our best score in relation to par since I’ve been here.”

Junior Chase Lovett-Woodsum shot his career low in the second round to claim the lowest round of the tournament for his 5-under score of 65. Lovett-Woodsum and sophomore Bernie D’Amato finished with a 2-under par. Junior Evan Harmeling finished third among the Tigers and 15th overall. Salazar and junior Patrick Wasserman also contributed to the team’s strong finish.

“Sunday was intense and we fought well,” Salazar said. “We finally played to our potential as a team and we’re more hungry than ever before. We know what it takes to win a tournament now, and I know all seven guys will be working even harder than before to convert our next opportunity into a tournament victory.”

The Tigers’ next challenge is the Windon Memorial Tournament in Illinois.

The women’s golf team hosted the Princeton Invitational this weekend at Springdale Golf Club’s par-72, 6,131-yard course. The Tigers competed against 11 opponents: rival Ivy Leaguers Columbia, Penn, Harvard and Yale, as well as Georgetown, Monmouth, Rollins, Rutgers, Sacred Heart, Seton Hall and St. John’s. The Tigers played to a second-place finish, behind Yale’s three-shot lead.

All top three finishes in the tournament were Ivy League teams, with Yale finishing in first place, Princeton in second and Penn in third.

“No one wants a second-place finish,” senior Rachel Blum said. “But there were a lot of positives to take away from this weekend. Freshman Kelly Shon placed second overall in her first collegiate event. This was also Coach [Nicki] Cutler’s first tournament as our head coach and it was a success.”

Shon and sophomore Anna Jang both finished among the top 10 players of the tournament, with Shon taking second place and Jang taking sixth. Blum and junior Wonji Choi also contributed to the team’s high finish.

“Overall, as a team this was a respectable first tournament finish and a great start to our fall season,” Blum said.