For most of recent memory, the golf team has been less than stellar, and according to senior team captain Kevin Scelfo, ‘Our team has been laughed at for the past 30 years.’
This year, however, the winds of change are blowing through the team, and the squad expects its re-tooled lineup to have a forceful showing at this weekend”s Colgate Invitational Tournament.
Colgate is playing host to 17 other schools, and Red head coach Matt Baughan is looking to take the top spot.
‘Last year, we had our most successful season in team history,’ Baughan said. ‘This year, we think we can do even better.’
The five players that will be making the trip to Hamilton are Scelfo, senior Billy Grover, junior Andy Sliwa, freshman Chad Bernstein and freshman Robbie Fritz. Freshman Bret Perry was slated to be the fifth golfer taken, but due to an eligibility technicality, he won”t be cleared in time for Colgate.
The nearly 7,000-yard Colgate course is known as being relatively tough, but no one on the squad is worried.
‘We”ve got alot of talent on this team,’ Baughan said. ‘All of our guys are pretty excited about the season, and about our opener at Colgate.’
‘Our team is exceptionally good this year,’ Scelfo added. ‘The scores that we”ve seen in qualifying are way better than we’ve had at any time. We have three freshmen [who] are really good, and all of our returning guys are playing really well.’
Last season, Scelfo was able to carry the Red to sixth place at the Ivy League tournament, and himself to second place overall. This season, Scelfo will be getting help from one of the unlikeliest of places — the freshman class. Bernstein, who won the squad”s qualifying tournament with an average score of 75, just three over par, during five full rounds on two weekends, has already lifted the team”s expectations.
‘Chad is playing really well,’ Scelfo said. ‘Both him and Bret putt really well and hit the ball very very straight. These two things together will lead to good scores.’
Because the Colgate Invitational is the Red”s first tournament of the season, it is viewed by the team as a launching pad for what they believe will be a highly