Men's Golf
Stevens and Josephson lead Rhody to victory
March 22, 2009
Bethany Beach, Del. - The University of Rhode Island Men's Golf team won the George Washington Invitational held at the Bear Trap Dunes Course. (Par 72-6843). The tournament was played on the Grizzly and Kodiak nines of the 27 hole complex.
The tournament was scheduled for 54 holes, but was reduced to only 36 on account of darkness. Rhode Island stood in sixth place after day one, with a score of 309. Skidmore and the University of Pennsylvania were atop the leaderboard with first day scores of 303.
Day two of competition belonged to Tom Drennan and the Rhody Iron five. The team recorded its best round of the year with a 292 in cold and windy conditions. With a two day total of 601, URI won the tournament by four shots over Longwood University (605), Penn (606), and Skidmore (609). The win was Rhode Island's first since the NEIGA Championship in the fall of 2007.
Individually, Mark Stevens and Kevin Josephson led the way. Stevens ended the tournament in second place (76-70=146), while Josephson recorded his best finish in a Rhode Island uniform with a tie for fifth (77-71=148). Taylor Fontaine made a big contribution with his rounds of 78-75=153, good for a top twenty finish. Brad Valois came in tied for 43rd (82-76=158). John Kelly shot a solid 78 in the opening round to help out Rhode Island's cause.
Justin Martinson of the University of Delaware won the event with rounds of 71-74=145.
Tom Drennan said of the team's effort, "I could not be more proud of the guys' performance. It was a total team effort. We have had to deal with some adversity over the course of the last few months, and the way the team came from behind to win is truly an indication of their character."
Rhode Island's day two round of 292 was the best of the day by eight shots.
The team returns to action next weekend, Mar. 27-29 at the Furman Invitational in Greenville, S.C.
