Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Golf Back on Course After Another Championship Season
9/10/2009 8:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Sept. 10, 2009
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Coming off a season in which they surprised many -- including their own head coach -- by rallying to win their third Patriot League title in the last four years, the Bison return their entire postseason lineup and much more in 2009-10 as they seem to be well-positioned for another championship run.
The Bison begin that title quest this weekend, when they travel to Hamilton, N.Y., for the Colgate Invitational at Seven Oaks GC. Bucknell has enjoyed recent success in this event, finishing in the top three in each of the last five years, including wins in 2004 and 2006. Last fall the Bison placed third at Colgate. This week's event has added significance because the 2010 Patriot League Championship will be back at Seven Oaks in the spring.
Ninth-year Bucknell head coach Jim Cotner has both star power -- reigning Patriot League individual champ Andrew Cohen is back for his senior year -- and strength in numbers. His roster features four accomplished seniors in Cohen, Brian Bartow, Jeff Pike and Ryan Schneiter. Cohen and Bartow are both All-Patriot Leaguers, Pike was the Patriot League Player of the Month in September 2008 but was injured for much of the spring, and Schneiter made the NCAA Regional lineup last year.
Alongside the senior class, juniors Ben Mattingly, Andrew Wallisch and Parker Phillips all finished last season playing their best golf, sophomore Will Bachman flashed his potential with a first-round 69 in his very first Patriot League Championship, and three very promising freshman join the squad in Dan Bernard, Jon Hartman and J.J. Szmadzinski.
Cotner's biggest headache entering the new year may be figuring out which five to start each week.
"We received contributions from a lot of different players at the Patriot League Championship and at the NCAAs last year, and that depth can be a real strong motivator," said Cotner. "Each guy knows he is going to have to work his hardest in order to play in the events. Last spring we weren't playing very well at all, and then all of the suddent we put it together for one weekend and won the Patriot League title."
Indeed, seven different Bison had a score counted in a postseason round last spring. But it's one thing to have a program with a lot of good players, and it's another to have 10 individuals pushing each other toward a team goal of a championship. And for that, Cotner credits his seniors.
"The key to our depth is having such a strong group of seniors who have been great examples of learning how to balance that time-management aspect into being excellent in the classroom and really strong players," praised Cotner. "The experience that we have gained from the NCAA Regionals is a motivating factor this year. We really want to go back, and we know the way to get there is through the Patriot League Championship. That is when we need to be playing our best."
Of that senior group, Cohen has been the most decorated thus far. In his first Patriot League Championship in 2007 he finished T-4th and earned Patriot League Co-Rookie of the Year honors. A year later he placed sixth and was back on the all-conference team, and then last year everything went right in April. Cohen warmed up for the conference championship by shooting 70-71 to win the Caves Valley Intercollegiate in Maryland, his first career individual victory.
A week later he did it again, breaking the league record with a 2-under-par 208 (71-68-69) at the Patriot League Championship at West Point. Cohen became the second Bucknell golfer to claim a Patriot League individual title, joining two-time winner Charlie Waddell (2005, 2006). His spring scoring average was a team-best 74.9, while his overall average, including the fall season, was 75.1.
After winning the conference title, Cohen was named the national College Player of the Week by Golf World magazine. Golf World noted that his winning score was nearly 25 strokes lower than the tournament average. In the back-to-back wins, he played 90 holes in 3-under par, and he birdied 20 of those 90 holes.
"Andrew is an excellent example of a grinder," said Cotner. "Most days he is a great ball-striker and will shoot a good score, but on the days when his ball-striking is not perfect he has learned how to put together a good score anyway."
Bartow finished T-9th at the 2009 Patriot League Championship with rounds of 77-76-74, giving him his first all-league plaque. He qualified for Bucknell's NCAA lineup as a freshman and shot 1-over for the final 36 holes. He had five top-10 finishes last year.
"Brian has really developed a much better sense of course management and decision-making, which has allowed him to become a more consistent player," said Cotner.
 |
|
For Pike, the fall of 2008 marked his best career stretch. He averaged 75.8 and won his first collegiate tournament, shooting 67-69 (4-under) to capture the Bucknell Invitational. The Patriot League Player of the Month last September, Pike also had a T-6th finish at the Colgate Invitational and shot a 2-over 74 in tough conditions at the rain-shortened Cornell Invitational. Pike's game turned south in the spring thanks to a back ailment, however, and he was not available in the postseason.
"Jeff is the poster boy for a Patriot League Scholar-Athlete," Cotner said of Pike, a management major with a 3.74 GPA. "He is excellent in the classroom and is a very dedicated, hard worker on the golf course. Last spring some health issues hindered him, but we hope that's behind him and he is looking forward to a big senior year."
Schneiter was not in Bucknell's six-man lineup for the Patriot League Championship last year, but he was playing solid golf late in the year and made the NCAA travel roster.
"Ryan is a perfect example of what hard work and dedication can do to help you develop into a better ball-striker and a complete Division I player," said Cotner. "Now we are just looking for more consistency from him."
Bucknell's low man at the NCAA Regional at The Club at Olde Stone in Bowling Green, Ky., was Mattingly, who shot 78-80-74 to finish T-55th. His 2-over 74 in the final round was the team's best of the week. He finished T-11th at the Patriot League Championship, six places better than his freshman-year showing.
"Day in and day out, Ben is the best ball-striker we have," Cotner proclaimed. "The key to his success this year is going to be course management and his confidence on the greens."
Phillips and Wallisch both played in the Patriot League Championship last spring. Phillips' first-round 78 was counted, while Wallisch closed with 77-76 to help the Bison rally to victory. Wallisch went on to play in the NCAA Regional as well.
"Andrew has figured out how to balance the time needed to prepare for Division I golf and the demands of Bucknell classes," said Cotner. "He has become a much more consistent ball-striker, and his short game, through a lot of hard work, is now at the level where he can shoot consistently low scores.
"Parker is finally getting the hang of Northeastern golf. Having grown up in California, the style of courses and types of shots required are a little different. Contributing at the Patriot League Championship was a big confidence boost for him."
Bachman saw considerable tournament action in the spring of his rookie year and posted a solid 76.4 average. He shot a 1-under 71 in the final round of the Hawk Invitational for his first career top-10 (T-7th), and he shot an even-par 72 in the final round at Caves Valley. That set him up for the opening-round 69 at the Patriot League tourney, which was much-needed considering Cohen was the only other Bison to shoot better than 77.
"Will's strongest asset on the golf course has been his short game," noted Cotner. "His putting and his shots around the greens have allowed him to be a contributor early in his career. This year his ball-striking has really improved, and he has returned in very good physical condition, which should help him on those 36-hole days."
Cotner said his freshman class may ultimately become the program's best in years. Bernard, Hartman and Szmadzinski all hit the ball well and all have very impressive junior resumes. Each of them need to figure out how to strategically prepare for a round at the college level, but all of them hit the ball a ton and have strong short games.
Following this week's Colgate Invitational, the Bison will host their own fall tournament on Sept. 18-19 at the Bucknell Golf Club. They will then travel to tournaments hosted by Cornell, Delaware, William & Mary and Lehigh to round out the fall season.
