Men’s Golf Finishes Eighth at CAA Championship

Barton Fires 1-under 71 to Claim 14th

04/18/04 9:30PM

SUFFOLK, VA - Junior co-captain Gary Barton (Staten Island, NY) fired a 1-under 71, his lowest round of the tournament, as William and Mary men’s golf claimed eighth at the Colonial Athletic Association Championship. The Tribe shot a final-round 304 on the 7,032-yard, par 72 Nansemond River Golf Club in Suffolk, VA to finish with 905 strokes. UNC Wilmington claimed the conference title, after losing in a playoff last year, with a total of 867. Towson’s Billy Wingerd defeated Jay Woodson (James Madison) and Greg Sampson (Old Dominion) in a playoff to capture the CAA individual medal after all three shot 213 (-3).

Barton orchestrated a strong recovery from a second-round 79 by carding a 71 (-1) for the final 18 holes. His three-round total of 222 (+6) netted him a share of 14th place, an improvement of nine places over his second-round standing. Freshmen Hunter Watts (Keswick, VA) carded a 78 (+6) in the final round after shooting 75 (+3) on both Friday and Saturday. Watts tied for 25th at 228 (+12). Two Tribe golfers tied for 27th as freshman Matt Brantingham (Richmond, VA) and sophomore Jeff Steckmest (Pacific Palisades, CA) both shot 229 (+13). Brantingham continued his consistent tournament, firing a 76 (+4) today to go along with a 76 in round one and a 77 (+5) in round two. Steckmest bookended a stellar 71 with two rounds of 79 (+7) for the finish, closing solidly with a great chip-in for par on No. 17 before just burning the edge on a birdie putt on No. 18. Junior Tom McGinn (Albany, NY) shot a final round 83 (+11) after a 76 yesterday to finish in 46th at 247.

First-year Tribe Director of Golf Jay Albaugh was disappointed the squad could not mount a charge in the final round after sitting only three strokes off third-place after round two, but did highlight several positives in his first CAA Championship. “We just couldn’t avoid what had been our trouble the past few tournaments: avoiding the big numbers like doubles and triples. But I was pleased to be well positioned after two rounds with a young team; it was great to get some championship experience for two of our freshmen, and I think there’s a lot to look forward two in the future based on our play here,” Albaugh said

The CAA Championship concludes men’s golf’s season.

CAA Championship FINAL Standings
Team Standings
Fin. School Scores
1 N. Car. Wilmington 288-289-290--867 +3
2 Old Dominion Univ. 288-297-291--876 +12
3 Towson University 295-298-290--883 +19
4 James Madison Univ. 293-306-288--887 +23
5 Drexel University 299-297-295--891 +27
6 Va. Commonwealth 305-301-293--899 +35
7 George Mason Univ. 299-307-298--904 +40
8 Wm. & Mary, Coll. of 302-299-304--905 +41
9 Delaware, U. of 308-313-301--922 +58
10 Hofstra University 325-332-311--968 +104


Top Individuals
Fin. Golfer Team Score
*1 Billy Wingerd Towson 73-68-72--213 -3
T2 Jay Woodson J. Madison 68-78-67--213 -3
Greg Sampson Old Domin. 70-72-71--213 -3
4 Derek Brown UNCW 71-69-74--214 -2
5 2 Tied at 215 -1
* Won in Playoff

W&M Individuals
T14 Gary Barton W&M 72-79-71--222 +6
T25 Hunter Watts W&M 75-75-78--228 +12
T27 Jeff Steckmest W&M 79-71-79--229 +13
T27 Matt Brantingham W&M 76-77-76--229 +13
46 Tom McGinn W&M 88-76-83--247 +31