April 27, 2008

Results

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Bucknell men's golf team was unable to win its third consecutive Patriot League Championship, but still had a solid outing at this weekend's event, placing second to Navy in this year's seven-team field. The Bison were 17 shots behind the Mids, but 18 strokes ahead of third-place and host Lehigh. Rahul Desai (Avon, Conn./Kingswood-Oxford) was Bucknell's top overall finisher, placing fourth with a 54-hole total of 231.

The Bison entered the final round at Saucon Valley Country Club seven strokes behind Navy, but the Mids posted a league-best 307 on the final day, compared to 317 for the second-place Bison. Overall, Navy shot a 925 with Bucknell's 942 in second.

Desai and Brian Bartow (Rye, N.Y./Rye Neck) both shot a 78 Sunday to tie for the lowest score for Bucknell. Andrew Cohen, who shot an 82 on Sunday, joined Desai in the top 10 of the individual standings with a sixth-place finish. He shot a three-round total of 235.

Also for Bucknell, Stuart Lindgren (Richfield, Minn./Richfield) shot an 80 on Sunday, while Ben Mattingly (Fishers, Ind./Park Tudor) and Keita Aoki (Tokyo, Japan/St. Mary's International School) carded 81s.

Lehigh shot 960 for the tournament, while Holy Cross (962), Colgate (965), Army (969) and Lafayette (978) rounded out the tightly bunched bottom half of the standings.

Patriot League champion Navy had three players finish in the top five of the individual standings, led by Erich Schoen, who shot a 54-hole 223 and carded a 75 Sunday. Also for the Mids, Ben Hayes (78-78-72) and David Miller (78-75-81) finished third and fifth, respectively.

The Bison were trying to become the first Patriot League team to win three consecutive men's golf titles since Navy in 1999-2001.