Amherst, MA -- The Williams men's gofers teed it up today at the par-72 Hickory Ridge Golf Course, site of the Fall NESCAC Qualifier. After torrential downpours on Friday, the course was incredibly soft. Putting proved to be especially challenging for competitors today. Leading the field of ten schools is Trinity (304). The Bantams were remarkably consistent, counting four scores of 76. Two strokes behind them is Hamilton (306). Williams (307) rounded out the tightly packed top-three. Middlebury (314) will hold down fourth place overnight.
Individually, Hamilton's Matt Yung (73) has the lead after Saturday's impressive one-over par round. Williams junior Ross Bowen (74) is one shot behind him; he made the turn in 39 but came home nicely with 35 to grab second place. Hamilton's Mac Pivirotto and Middlebury's Billy Prince share a tie of third place after a pair of three-over 75's.
The Ephs were inconsistent throughout the rest of the lineup. Junior Matt McCarron and sophomore Jake Goldenring each fired 77; McCarron did well to recover after a front-nine 41. The final score for Williams came from junior Jake Abrahams. A birdie on 16 got him to three-over par, but he was undone by the tough 18th hole and shot 79. Classmate Dylan Dethier was able to scrape together an 80 despite losing five golf balls.
Williams will be in the final wave tomorrow with Trinity, Hamilton, and Middlebury. The top four schools in this event will qualify for the NESCAC Championship in April, hosted by tomorrow's winner. Tee times are set to begin at 10:30 A.M. Sunday morning.
