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September 7, 2008 VCU OVERCOMES CONDITIONS, STIFF COMPETITION TO FINISH THIRD CAMBRIDGE, Md.—For Virginia Commonwealth University men’s golf coach Matt Ball, Sunday’s competition was the least worrisome part of the Maryland Intercollegiate. His squad shot an 8-under second round en route to a third place finish at River Marsh Golf Club. What concerned Ball was the possibility of his team’s round not counting. “We were worried all day that our round might not count because of darkness,” Ball said. “With this weekend’s weather, they tried to squeeze in 36 holes. If one team didn’t complete its second round before darkness, nobody’s second round scores would have counted. That concerned me because of how well we played today, particularly in the afternoon.” Originally scheduled for 54 holes in two days, the tournament was changed to a one-day, 36-hole format due to weather conditions supplied by Tropical Storm Hanna. The 18 teams in the field began competition at 6:45 a.m. After the morning round, VCU found itself in fourth place, nine shots behind North Carolina State and Texas State for second place. In the afternoon, VCU reeled off the second-best round in the field to jump Texas State and finish one shot behind North Carolina State for second place. The Rams closed with a 3-under 565 for the tournament, beating the likes of North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia, as well as CAA foes William & Mary and Old Dominion. Arkansas won the event with a two-round total of 544 (-24). Pacing VCU was junior Lanto Griffin (Blacksburg, Va.), who finished tied for fifth with a 4-under 138 (71-67). “Lanto’s really hitting the ball well,” Ball said. “He’s playing really well. He’ll be scoring even better if he starts making a few more putts. If he gets hot with the putter, he’ll be able to go really deep.” Fellow-junior Vincent Nadeau (Penhook, Va.) was one shot behind Griffin (71-68). He finished tied for seventh. Junior Rafael Campos (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico), who was fully recovered from a neck ailment that limited him a week ago, carded an even-par 142 (70-72) to finish tied for 13th. Sophomore Mark Jargren (Helsingborg, Sweden) bounced back from an opening-round 79 with a second-round 69. He closed the tournament tied for 42nd with a 6-over 148. Making his first appearance of the season, senior Matt Brookbanks (West Midlands, England) recorded a 10-over 152 (77-75) to round out the VCU scoring. Through two tournaments, VCU has beaten 25 teams and lost to just three. The Rams will take three weeks off before hosting the VCU Shootout beginning on Monday, September 29. |
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