The St. Thomas Aquinas men’s golf team picked up right where they left off from the fall with a wire to wire victory at the Bear Trap Dunes Invitational hosted by Dowling College. During the first round of play, the Spartans faced consistent winds of 25 mph and fast, firm greens. Being fully prepared, the team came out and played an exceptional round of golf. Junior Brendan Hunter led the charge with a spectacular 5-under par 67. Hunter had 6 birdies on the day and just one bogey enroute to a tournament low score. Sophomore Mike Miranda battled all day, managing to birdie 2 of his final 3 holes to shoot a 1-over par 73. Kevin Gately also had a solid days on the links, carding a 2-over par 74, while Freshman Mike Frizalone posted 75. Senior Chris Gentle battled back after a difficult front 9 to shoot a 78. The Spartans posted the low score of the day with a 1-over par round of 289 which was good for an 11 shot lead over 2nd place Wilmington University.
On day 2 the temperatures dropped into the low 40’s and with winds at 25 mph, conditions were simply frigid. Sporting winter hats and gloves, the Spartans came out firing. Coming off his tantalizing 67, Brendan Hunter put together another stellar round of golf. With 2 birdies and 2 bogeys on the front side, Hunter turned at 36 and maintained his 4 shot lead over Cal Meyers of Bentley. Hunter proceeded to stick his approach on number 10 to 4 feet to get back to 1-under. After pars on 11, 12, 13 and 14, Hunter reached the par 5- 15th hole in two. With a two putt birdie, Hunter found himself at 2-under for the round and 7 under par for the tournament. After a par on the difficult 17th hole, Hunter stepped up to the challenging 18th hole. After just missing the green on his approach, Hunter knocked his chip to 4 feet just above the hole. His par putt just missed, hitting the low edge, but a bogey was good enough for a 1-under par 71 and a 4 shot victory over the field. This was Hunter’s first outright tournament victory for the Spartans. Senior Chris Gentle bounced back very well after his tough first round to card an even par 72. After playing his first 8 holes at 3 over par, Gentle rattled off birdies on 9, 10 and 11 to get it back to even for his round. After pars on 13 and 14, Gentle had a 3-putt bogey on the 15th. With the long par 5- 16th hole ahead of him, Gentle was able to get his second shot green side and proceeded to chip to 3 feet above the hole. Gentle’s birdie on 16 got him back to even par on the day and that is where he would finish after two exceptional pars on 17 and 18. Kevin Gately battled the conditions all days, managing to post a second consecutive round of 74 while freshman Mike Frizalone carded another round of 75. Frizalone played his first 9 holes at 7 over par, but put it together on the back 9 to card a 4 under 32.
The Spartans 2nd round score of 292 (+4) was the lowest round of the day and good enough for a 17 shot victory over Wilmington University and 23 strokes better than Bentley University. The entire starting lineup finished in the top 10 with Hunter capturing medalist honors.
This was the team’s 4th tournament victory in their seven events and the 4th time a Spartan has earned medalist honors in a tournament (Frizalone - 2 wins, Miranda - 1 win, Hunter 1 win). The team is currently ranked 15th in the nation for team scoring average and 1st overall in the East Region. The boys are back in action next Monday and Tuesday for the “Coach Carpenter” Classic hosted by California University of Pennsylvania.