Freshman Perman shoots 149 to lead M. Golf at Navy

With first-year golfer Chad Perman leading the way, Penn began its season in Annapolis, Md., at the Navy Invitational. The Quakers were in 14th place after the first day of the two-day tournament, but shaved 13 strokes off their team score yesterday to finish in the middle of the 18-team field. The final results of the teams that teed off in the late afternoon were not available by late last night, but Penn coach Francis Vaughn anticipates that Penn will finish eighth or ninth. Junior Todd Golditch ended the invitational with a score of 150 -- shooting a 75 both days -- but Perman's two-day total score of 149 was best among the Quakers' golfers. "I'm very happy with my score, since this was my first tournament but I still want to improve some aspects of my game," Perman said. While Perman shot a 76 on the opening day of the invitational, some of Penn's veterans struggled. "We had three players who worked all summer and didn't play much golf," Vaughn said. "This was their first tournament since April, so there was some nervousness and rustiness." Meanwhile, Perman played in many tournaments over the summer, including the Virginia State Golf Association Junior Championship, which he won with a record score of 205 over three rounds. "I was a little more fresh," Perman said. "You could really tell with my putting on the greens." After the Red and Blue shot a combined score of 307 on Saturday, Penn rebounded yesterday by shooting a 294 -- a score which would have been good for sixth place after the first day of golf. Sunday's performance, in which every Penn golfer shot 77 or lower, was highlighted by senior Rob Hunt's 70 on the tough Naval Academy Country Club course. "On Saturday, we made mistakes we wouldn't normally make, but we redeemed ourselves [yesterday]," Vaughn said. "We showed great character coming back." Hunt, perhaps, showed the greatest character of all. His score of 83 in his opening round was Saturday's sixth-worst score of the day, but he showed his resilience yesterday by shooting one stroke under par -- the only Quaker to achieve such a feat this weekend. Penn's total score of 294 yesterday was the Quakers' best at the Naval Academy Country Club during Vaughn's tenure at Penn. Vaughn still has three fall invitationals left on the schedule to help decide which golfers he would like to use for the spring season, which will determine the Ivy League champion. Many Quakers showed promise yesterday after a mediocre showing on Saturday, but one Quaker in particular made a strong statement why he should be starting come springtime -- freshman Chad Perman.