It might not have been the finish he was hoping for, but Pennsylvania College of Technology golf coach Matt Haile saw some good things from his team on Tuesday's final day of the Penn State University Athletic Conference/United States Collegiate Athletic Association championships.
The Wildcats (671 total) finished third in the PSUAC, behind champ Penn State Hazleton (655) and runner-up Penn State Mont Alto (659), and they placed seventh in the USCAA national tournament. After Monday's first round on the 7,228-yard, par-72 Penn State Blue Course, Penn College was fourth among PSUAC teams and ninth overall. Lindenwood-Belleview won the USCAA title with a 597 total.
"We had a better day today, but it was too much lost ground on the first day to recover from," Haile said, after his team shaved 21 strokes off Monday's 346 team total with a 325 on Tuesday.
"Alex made the top 10 in the PSUAC, which was awesome for him," the coach added, after sophomore Alex Howe, of Lake Ariel, followed his opening 77 with an 86 Tuesday. His 163 total was good for sixth in the PSUAC and tied for 25th overall. Tommy Stirling, of Southern Maine Community College, won the individual USCAA title with a 72-68"140. Nick Tristani, of Penn State Hazleton, topped the PSUAC field with a 79-76"155.
Also for Penn College, Dan Kramer, of Avon, Conn., shot 90-78"168; Corey Teeple, of Lake Ariel, shot 88-80"168; Kurt Linhart, of Zionsville, shot 91-83"174; Joe Peters, of Harrisburg, shot 93-84"177; and Nick Krupka, of Allentown, shot 96-90"186.