Savannah, Ga. – The Stetson men's golf team finished the fall season with a flourish, even if it did end a day earlier than expected.
Following a match-play victory over Embry Riddle on Sunday at LPGA International, Coach Larry Watson carried four players to Savannah to compete as individuals in the SSU Tiger Fall Invitational. The event was scheduled for three rounds, but Tuesday's final round of competition was rained out, making it a 36-hole event.
If the Hatters had been entered in the tournament as a team, they would have won the event by 15 shots over the hosts from Savannah State. Individually, the Hatters placed three players among the top six in the field. Each of the top eight players in the final results were entered in the tournament as individuals, with Stetson's trio joined by three from Florida A&M and two from Bethune-Cookman.
FAMU's Kevin Parker took top honors, edging Stetson's Tate Smith by one shot. Parker opened with a 68 on Monday and then posted an even par 72 to finish with a four-under par 140. Smith opened with a 69 and followed up with a 72 for a three-under 141.
The Hatters also had strong performances from freshman Jared Nicolls and senior David Torres. Nicolls tied for fourth with a one-over par score of 145 while Torres tied for sixth with a two-over par 146. The 67 Torres posted in the second round on Monday was the low individual round of the tournament.
Freshman Baylor Payne also earned a top 20 finish with a 10-over par score of 154.
Monday's two round of competition marked a second consecutive long day on the course. The Hatters faced Embry-Riddle in a Ryder Cup style match on Sunday, winning the event 5.5 to 2.5 over the eight matches.
In that event, the squads were pitted against each other in pairs, with the morning matches playing as a best ball competition. The afternoon matches were alternate shot events.
The host Eagles took two of the four matches in the morning and halved a third to take a 2.5 to 1.5 lead into the afternoon, but the Hatters bounced back and dominated the alternate shot matches, winning all four.
In the best ball competition, ERAU's duo of Tyler Green and Adam LaGrange edged Stetson's Nicolls and EJ Grimes 1-up. The same score gave the Eagles their second point as Thomas Garnier and Patrick Byrne edged Stetson's Chase Levesque and Torres.
The match between Stetson's duo of Spencer Turner and Payne against the Eagles' Timothy Coles and James Pitenis finished all square.
In a foreshadowing of the afternoon matches, Stetson's Tyler Dierwechter and Smith dominated the tandem of Kyle Morgan and Joshua Hickling 6 and 5 to give the Hatters their first point.
During the alternate shot matches the Hatters easily won all four. Nicolls and Grimes downed Coles and Pitenis 3 and 2, Torres and Levesque topped Green and LaGrange 2-up, while Turner and Payne, and Dierwechter and Smith, defeated Morgan and Hickling, and Garnier and Byrne, 4 and 3.
The Hatters will return to action in late February when they host the Legacy Intercollegiate at the Legacy Club in Lake Mary. That event is scheduled for February 28 through March 1.
