The golf team opened its season with an average showing over the weekend, finishing seventh out of 14 teams at the Bowdoin Invitational.
Although the team didn't quite meet its own lofty expectations for the tournament, the Jumbo golfers still shot a respectable two-day total of 653 in less than ideal conditions.
Led by senior co-captain Phil Haslett's 80 and sophomore Danny Moll's 78, the squad came out strong on Saturday. Junior Brad Dreisbach also recorded a solid round of 82. Sophomore Luke Heffernan carded an 84, while senior co-captain Benjie Moll turned in an 85 for a five-man total of 323 at the end of the first day of play.
"Personally, this is not one of my favorite courses," Heffernan said. "It's off-putting because the front nine is way harder than the back. The course, especially the greens, was difficult this week because of the conditions."
The Jumbos persevered, however, as Haslett fired another 80 on Sunday for a two-day total of 160, which put him in a tie for 20th place on the individual leaderboard. Danny Moll registered an 83 in the second round, giving him a total of 161, good for a 22nd-place finish overall. Heffernan finished at 166 for the tournament, while Benjie Moll turned in a total of 168. Dreisbach rounded out the group with a two-day composite of 172.
The team's two-day total of 653 was 54 strokes behind winner Husson College, which tallied an overall score of 599.
"As a squad, we underperformed," Heffernan said. "But when you look at the numbers, we actually did better than last year. We didn't play to our potential, but we're looking to turn things around this weekend."
This weekend the Jumbos will compete in the Williams Invitational.
"I think Williams is the best course we play all year," Heffernan said. "The greens and the course in general are always in great shape. We are looking to perform the way we are capable of, and if we do that, we will be among the top tier of teams at the tournament."
