Four tournaments into their fall season, the members of the golf team are already getting into championship form.
With the all-important NESCAC Tournament is coming up next Saturday, the team had a busy weekend, entering two tournaments: the Nichols Invitational, a one-day event in Dudley, Mass. Thursday, and the two-day Williams Invitational Saturday and Sunday.
After a second-place finish at Nichols, the Jumbos struggled with consistency the rest of the weekend, finishing in 10th place at Williams, a respectable finish, but behind NESCAC rivals Trinity, Middlebury and the host Ephs. They must now look to improve their standing among their conference foes in time for NESCACs.
The Williams tournament was held at the par 71 Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown, Mass. Nineteen teams entered the two-day event, which was won by the Skidmore Thoroughbreds, who also captured last week's Duke Nelson Invitational. The individual winner was Skidmore's Tobin Spector, whose two-day total of 143 was one shot ahead of Castleton State's Bryan Smith.
Senior tri-captain Dave Hunt was the low man for the Jumbos, shooting 76 on Saturday and 74 Sunday. His two-day total of 150 was good for ninth overall. Standout freshman Luke Heffernan continued his stellar play with consistent rounds of 78 and 80. Sophomore Brad Dreisbach was third on the team with a total of 163, including an impressive 77 on Saturday. Junior Phil Haslett netted a two-day total of 164, while senior tri-captain Mike O'Neil recorded a total of 166 for the weekend.
"Taconic is a great course and was a great test for us," Heffernan said. "The greens were playing quick, and some of the holes played long because they were uphill. There were also a lot of tucked pins, which forces you to putt well."
"It's a must that you put the ball on the fairway there, or you're going to have a very rough go of it," Hunt added. "The greens were very quick, so if you put the ball on top of the hole, it's almost an automatic three-putt."
The short game was a sore spot for the Jumbos, who had more three-putts than they would have liked. Hunt emphasized the need to improve this aspect of the team's game, especially with NESCACs looming.
"We struggled on the greens, which is something we'll definitely have to work on this week," Hunt said.
The Jumbos' second-place finish out of four teams in Thursday's event was 18 strokes behind host Nichols College. Hunt led the Tufts squad with a 72, good for third place overall in the 20-man field.
Heffernan also had an impressive showing, carding a 75, which netted him fifth place. Junior Benjie Moll finished with a solid round of 82, one shot ahead of O'Neil and freshman Danny Moll. The event's individual champion was Nichols junior Chris Brock, who fired a 70 for the day.
Despite the kinks in their short game, the Jumbos are optimistic about their performance at NESCACs, which awaits them at Hamilton Saturday. The tournament has huge postseason implications, as the top four finishers get a spot in the spring playoff and a chance to represent the conference at Div. III Nationals.
"This is the biggest week of the season for us, and we feel that we have our top squad for the championships," Hunt said. "Our collective game is definitely improving, and I personally feel that my game is really coming around."
The Jumbos saw a quick preview of NESCACs at Williams this weekend, as they finished fourth out of the eight conference teams at the invitational. They outscored Bowdoin, Hamilton, Amherst and Wesleyan despite the absences of Danny Moll and senior Pat Sullivan, who were both home for Yom Kippur this past weekend.
"We have been getting solid performances from [Heffernan] and Pat Sullivan, who will be back to help us out," Hunt said. "There are five good squads competing for four spots. We just need to be consistent so that we can avoid being the one team left out."
