ABBOTTSTOWN, Pa. – Paul Kovalcheck (Fairless
Hills, Pa./Truman) improved by one shot each day to finish
with a three-round total of 234, leading McDaniel to a second-place
finish at the 2009 Centennial Conference (CC) men's golf
championships hosted at The Bridges Golf Club on Friday-Sunday.
The Green Terror carded a three-day total of 951 to finish 12
strokes behind team champion Franklin & Marshall, which fired a
939. A 308 round on the second day keyed the Diplomats'
second crown in three seasons.
McDaniel shot a 319 in Friday's first round to finish three
strokes off the pace before falling 13 strokes behind with a 318 on
Saturday. The Green Terror's 314 cut one stroke off the
deficit and improved the squad from third to second for its fifth
runner-up finish to go with six titles in the 16 years of the
tournament.
Kovalcheck opened his all-conference performance with a 79 on
Friday before firing a 78 on Saturday and a 77 on Sunday to finish
tied for third place overall. Dickinson's Tucker
Joyce snapped the Green Terror streak of four straight
individual champions with a 227 that included a one-under par 71 in
the second round.
Greg Bowman (Catonsville, Md./Catonsville) posted
a 236 to finish as a part of three-way tie for sixth – one
shot shy of all-conference honors. Bowman carded an 80 on Friday
before posting matching rounds of 78 on Saturday and
Sunday.
KJ Mazurek (Rumson, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven) opened
his 11th-place showing of 240 with a 77 before carding
rounds of 81 and 82, respectively.
Jeff Smith (Elkridge, Md./Cardinal Gibbons) carded
a season-best round of 77 on Sunday to cap his
12th-place total of 241. Smith shot an 83 in the opening
round and an 81 on Saturday.
Alex Campbell (Howell, N.J./Wall)rounded
out the McDaniel competitors with a three-day total of 260
(88-83-89).
Team Scores: 1. Franklin & Marshall 939
(316-308-315), 2. McDaniel 951 (319-318-314), 3. Muhlenberg 953
(322-323-308), 4. Dickinson 962 (316-320-326), 5. Swarthmore 966
(331-313-322), 6. Gettysburg 1005 (333-348-324).
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