April 28, 2011

Patriot League Golf Championship page

Center Valley, Pa. - A former champion, a pair of three-time All-Patriot League selections and nine additional returning All-League honorees highlight an accomplished field in what promises to be a competitive Patriot League Golf Championship beginning Saturday at Naval Academy Golf Course in Annapolis, Md.

The 2011 Patriot League Golf Championship is a two-day, 54-hole tournament, with 36 holes of play on Saturday and 18 holes scheduled for Sunday. Team scores consist of the lowest four scores to be counted each round, with six golfers competing for each of the seven Patriot League squads. The winning team receives the Patriot League's automatic berth to the NCAA Regionals on May 19-21.

Individual awards will also be determined by finish at the Patriot League Golf Championship. The individual champion receives the Patriot League Player of the Year Award, while the top freshman is named Rookie of the Year. The first five finishers receive first-team All-Patriot League status, while the next five take home second-team All-Patriot League honors. The Patriot League Coach of the Year award is voted on by the League's seven head coaches.

Lafayette won its first Patriot League title in 2010, with Rob Robertson earning the Player of the Year award after winning the event by one stroke. Robertson headlines a cast of outstanding returning golfers in 2011. Also returning after earning first-team All-Patriot League honors last season are Army's Matt Philie and Holy Cross' Steve Zychowski, while Lafayette's Tyler Ostrovsky, Lehigh's Doug Marcincin and Dwight D'lorio, Navy's Ben Hayes and Peter Reilly, Army's Matt Krembel and Holy Cross' Michael McCarthy all received second-team All-Patriot League recognition with a top-10 finish last year.

Ostrovsky and Krembel will try to join an exclusive list of only six golfers that have earned four All-Patriot League honors.

While Lafayette won the 2010 title and boasts the returning Player of the Year, it was Navy picked first in the preseason poll by coaches and sports information directors. The Mids have the advantage of playing on their home course, which has been a great spot for Hayes. The senior won the Navy Spring Invitational for the third time on April 16-17, and has been named Patriot League Golfer of the Month twice in 2010-11. Hayes (2008) and Reilly (2009) have each won Patriot League Rookie of the Year awards, while freshman David Hall hopes to do the same after opening his career as the Golfer of the Month in September.

The Leopards showed they should be a major contender again by placing third of 20 teams at the Navy Spring Invitational, one spot ahead of the Mids and also in front of Bucknell, Lehigh and Colgate. Lafayette was picked second in the preseason with Ostrovsky and Robertson expected to lead the way. Jim Hutnik was last year's Patriot League Coach of the Year for leading Lafayette to the title.

Under the direction of first-year Head Coach Brian Watts, Army was picked to finish third in the Championship and has depth to contend for the title. In addition to the accomplishments for Krembel and Philie, the Black Knights have received strong seasons from Anthony Kim and William Park, who was an All-Patriot League selection in 2009.

Bucknell has won three of the past five titles, and will look to Dan Bernard, Ben Mattingly and Will Bachman to anchor the chase in 2011.

Lehigh was picked to finish in fifth place after coming in second last season. The Mountain Hawks have Marcincin and D'lorio leading the way after last year's All-Patriot League selections, while Duncan Zeiders earned second-team All-League honors in 2009.

Will Delano, Ben Jessen and Josh Spellman will be called on for Colgate, which is led by first-year Head Coach Keith Tyburski.

Though picked to finish seventh, Holy Cross brings back a pair of talented sophomores in Zychowski and McCarthy. Zychowski qualified for the 2010 U.S. Golf Amateur Championship.

The Patriot League Championship will be held at the Naval Academy Golf Course for the fifth time, tying for the most at any venue. The 18-hole course features 6,611 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 71. The course rating is 71.7 and it has a slope rating of 128. For more information, read page seven of the Championship program.

Army leads all programs with nine Patriot League titles, and will be looking for its first since 2005. Navy is next with five championships, most recently in 2008, while Bucknell has claimed three and Lehigh two in addition to Lafayette's first crown last year.

Visit the Patriot League Golf Championship page for more including tee times, inclement weather policies, directions and information for the Naval Academy Golf Club and updates after each day of competition.