Men’s Golf Team Clinches ECAC Championship

The Middlebury men’s golf team enjoyed another victory this season, easily winning the ECAC Championship at Crumpin Fox Golf Course in Bernardston, Mass.

The Panthers finished with a two-day total of 635 strokes, 13 ahead of runner-up Western New England College. Elms College (649), Nichols College (651) and Endicott College (655) rounded out the top five. Amherst College, the only other NESCAC team to compete in the tournament, finished in eighth place.

Middlebury got off to a fast start on Saturday, Oct. 12 and finished with a score of 318, six strokes ahead of Nichols and Endicott. They followed up on Sunday, Oct. 13 with a total of 317, distancing themselves from surging Western New England and Elms while the other schools fell back.

Fitz Bowen ’17 led the way for the Panthers, capturing second place overall in the tournament with a score of 154. His day-two 75 was tied for the best single-day score of the weekend. Matt Marra ’17, playing in the team’s top five for the first time this season, made the most of the opportunity by finishing in a tie for sixth place overall with an impressive 158. NESCAC Player of the Year John Louie ’15 (160) finished eighth overall while Chris Atwood ’14 (164) tied for 20th. Max Alley ’14 rounded out the Middlebury squad with a score of 168.

Rob Donahoe ’14, the top scorer in the NESCAC this year, did not compete.

“Crumpin Fox was a true test of golf: tight tree lines, undulated greens, and plenty of hazards,” said Bowen. “Despite these challenges, we stayed focused and were able to keep the ball in play.”

It was the final weekend of the year for the Panthers, who finished the fall season with four trophies in only five tournaments. Most notably, the team qualified for the NESCAC Championship, which it will host in April at the Ralph Myhre Golf Course. The team missed this opportunity last year, finishing fourth at the qualifying tournament hosted at Amherst. It went on to finish third at the NESCAC tournament last May, behind Williams and Trinity.

The times seem to have changed for the Panthers as Middlebury is the favorite to win the NESCAC tournament due to both its success this fall and the strong veteran presence of players like Alley, Atwood, and Donahoe who have played in the tournament several times. If they continue their high level of play in the spring, they will also be poised for success at the NCAA Division III Championship in May.