SPORTS BRIEFS: Wednesday, April 29, 1998

Golf second in final match of season Coming off of its victory at the Ivy League Championships held at Bethpage, N.Y., the Quakers posted a score of 604 over two rounds, falling eight shots short of the champion Nittany Lions. While Penn did defeat top regional foes Seton Hall and James Madison, it will be difficult for them to vault past these teams in the rankings and into the top four in the region. Only the top four teams will advance to the NCAA regionals. Leading the way for Penn was junior Kiki Kyrle. Kyrle shot 74-70 for a 144 total, only 2 shots out behind the first place finisher. Kyrle was followed by senior captain Adam Bradshaw, who posted a 153 combined score, and tied for 22nd. Tied for 24th was sophomore Rob Goldfaden, who shot rounds of 81 and 73. Freshman Kyle Moran, 77-82, and freshman Todd Golditch, 75-86, also chipped in for the second place finish. With the season over, Penn coach Francis Vaughn and his troop prepare for next fall by playing in a variety of summer golf invitationals. Leading the way will be Kyrle and Vaughn, who join forces in the 83rd annual better ball Screen Door Open. Junior Brian "Dedans" Ross Owens will defend his title in the AJ Drexel Paul. He will be joined by his doubles amateur racquets partner, Stephen Lester Parks. Most of the off-season work will come from some of Penn's other golfers. Juniors Brent Neiman and PJ Lewis will attempt to recapture the Dixon-Stein cup from fellow Quakers Shiv Puri and Robert Hunt III. Finally, Andy Orekar and Jay "Hodges" Weintraub will also compete in many summer events, although their careers for Penn have come to a close. That's it for the spring, see you next year. -- Matt Greenberger W. Crew outstroked by Princeton's top crews There were no surprises for the Penn women's crew team last Saturday at the Award Plaque against Princeton and Dartmouth. The Tigers, whose varsity team is currently ranked second and novices third in the EAWRC, won every race of the day -- including the Varsity Four. In the first Varsity Eight, the Quakers' time of 6:46.9 placed them last behind Princeton (6:24.0) and Dartmouth (6:28.2). Penn coach Barb Kirch said she "would have liked to finish closer" but was hardly shocked by the margin. Kirch said her team's ability to stay with Princeton for the first 500 was an encouraging sign with Eastern Sprints, the pinnacle of the rowing season, steadily approaching. Kirch was also pleased with Penn's performance in the Varsity Four (7:29.6), finishing third just one second behind the Big Green. The four rowers will learn on May 19 if they qualified to represent the Mid-Atlantic region nationally in the event. In the novice race, Penn's time of 6:47.2 placed them second behind Princeton, while the second novice boat finished last (7:17.7). Coach Susan Herman said her team's come-from-behind victory over Dartmouth showed improvement from the Quakers' performance in the Class of '89 Plate the previous weekend, when they struggled and lost in the final sprint. -- Kate Goldhaber