Bucknell University Athletics
BUCKNELL MEN'S GOLF REPEATS AS PATRIOT LEAGUE CHAMPS!
4/22/2007 8:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 22, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Senior Charlie Waddell (Wilmette, Ill./Lake Forest Academy) shot a 2-under-par 68 to help the Bucknell men's golf team win its second straight Patriot League championship Sunday afternoon at the Bucknell Golf Course. Waddell, Patriot League Co-Rookie of the Year Andrew Cohen (Mamaroneck, N.Y./Mamaroneck) and junior Keita Aoki (Tokyo, Japan/St. Mary's International School) all finished in the top 10 for the Bison, who claimed the title by three shots over Navy.
The victory also guarantees Bucknell a second straight berth in the NCAA Regionals. Last season, the Bison finished in 26th place in NCAA West Regional in Tucson, Ariz., in its first national team appearance since 1961.
Bucknell began the final round two strokes behind Army, but the nine-time champion Black Knights faltered on Sunday, posting a team total of 302. Despite counting an 80, Bucknell shot 295 in the final round to hold off Navy, which entered the day in third place, four shots behind the Bison.
After opening with rounds of 74 and 73, Waddell turned in his best score of the spring with a 68. He bogeyed the par-5 third hole but never had another miscue the rest of the day. Waddell closed the front nine with birdies on the sixth and ninth holes, and after seven straight pars he made a clutch birdie on No. 17. He then made a terrific recovery on the final hole after his tee shot went well left, clearing the trees before settling by the first tee. He lofted a shot back over the trees near the front of the green and got up and down for par.
Waddell, the only repeat Patriot League individual champion in league history, was looking for his third straight first-place medal. Instead, his 215 composite left him in third place, three shots behind Matt Czarnecki of Holy Cross, who shot 73-68-71 to become the first Crusader to win the title.
Still, Waddell will graduate as a four-time All-Patriot League honoree, finishing sixth, first, first and third in his four conference tournament appearances.
Cohen, playing in the final group, had a pair of birdies on the day and made a nice chip to save par on No. 18, clinching the title. He shot 72-74-74 for a 54-hole total of 220, good for a tie for fourth place. Cohen joined Lehigh's Steve Suarez as the low freshmen in the field, and the two shared PL Rookie of the Year honors.
With Bucknell's other three players struggling, Aoki's final-round 73 proved clutch. He shot 73-76-73 for a 222 total, placing him in a tie for sixth place and earning him an All-Patriot League certificate for the first time. Aoki recovered from an early double-bogey on the tough par-3 second hole with back-to-back birdies at 9 and 10.
Rahul Desai (Avon, Conn./Kingswood-Oxford) had a good day on Saturday with rounds of 72-76, and he entered the final round in the top 10 before shooting 80 on Sunday. Stuart Lindgren (Richfield, Minn./Richfield) also posted an 80, while Kyle Moran (Greenwich, Conn./Brunswick School), struggling with a sore back, finished with an 83.
Bucknell head coach Jim Cotner earned Patriot League Coach of the Year honors for the third straight year. He is the first coach in league history to receive the honor three years in a row. Cotner has now led the Bison to eight tournament victories since the start of the 2003-04 season, with two of them coming in the Patriot League Championship.
Navy's Chris Renninger, who began the day tied for the individual lead with Czarnecki, shot 72 to finish alone in second place, one off the lead.
After opening with a pair of 293s, Army slipped to 302 on Sunday for a 54-hole total of 888, two behind Navy. Lehigh took fourth at 890, followed by Colgate (908), Lafayette (913) and Holy Cross (913).
Bucknell will learn its NCAA Regional destination at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 7. The regionals will be contested May 17-19 at three sites: The Golf Club of Georgia in Alpharetta, Ga., Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill., and the ASU Karsten Golf Course in Tempe, Ariz. The finals will be May 30-June 2 at Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in Williamsburg, Va.
