M. Golf takes the most strokes in James Madison Invite

The Penn men's golf team had a fitting finish to a less than impressive fall season, finishing dead last in a talent-laden field at the James Madison Invitational played over the par-72, 6,868 yard Wintergreen Resort course in Nellysburg, Va. Shooting a combined team score of 640, the Quakers were 59 strokes behind the eventual champs from Seton Hall, and 20 strokes behind the penultimate school, Sam Rutigliano's Liberty University. Penn's leading performer was sophomore Kyle Moran, who placed 20th overall in the field, with a 78 on day one followed by an extremely impressive 73 on day two. Moran's effort, however, did little to inspire his teammates. Junior Rob Hunt was the only other Quaker to even break 80, shooting rounds of 82-76. Hunt was followed by junior Rob Goldfaden who shot 85-81, senior Brian Owens, 83-83, and sophomore Kieran Doherty's 86-82. The tournament medalist was Seton Hall's Mike Costigan, shooting four under par for the two day event. He was followed by Temple's Garren Poirier, who was the only other contestant to shoot below par for the two day event, finishing two under par. Penn's performance does not bode well for the spring Ivy Championships. Penn placed a dreary 36 strokes behind Princeton -- the only Ivy in the field -- which was a distance that will be hard to make up. While Penn's play was certainly nowhere near what they are capable of, many of the earlier finishes also left the Quakers far short of where their expectations lay at the culmination of last spring. "Even though our competition was stronger, that has nothing to do with what we shot, only where we placed, our scores this weekend were not good," senior Brian Owens said. Penn is now done with its fall season. Winter practice and their annual spring break trip will hopefully leave the Quakers prepared for their three tournament spring schedule, which ends with Penn defending their first Ivy crown in years at Bethpage State Park's Red Course. Penn's lineup may very well change this spring, but with only two freshmen available and few others left on Penn's bench, it will take dedication from the current Quakers to get back to where they belong.