On Monday, March 23, the Villanova golf team traveled to Williamsburg, VA, competing in its third tournament of the spring season, the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate.
Through the first 36 holes of the tournament, the Wildcats finished in third place overall, shooting 574 (+6) overall after shooting 285 (+6) in the first round and 289 (+5) in the second round.
Senior captains Matt Zerfass and Ryan Pamer led the way for the ‘Cats on Day One, both shooting 141 (-1) on the day, finishing tied for sixth in the tournament.
Fifth-year Brockton English also contributed for Villanova, shooting 145 (+3) on the day. His performance tied him for 26th. Sophomore Vibhav Alokam closed the first two rounds tied for 34th. Alokam shot 147 (+5) on the first day, and junior Nathan Marion rounded out the ‘Cats lineup, shooting 149 (+7) to finish tied for 39th.
Following the first day of the tournament, which consisted of 36 holes, the final round on Tuesday consisted of 18, in which the Wildcats shot 289 (+5) as a team. The performance left the ‘Cats at 863 (+11), giving them a second place finish in the 2026 Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate.
Zerfass played an impressive final round for the ‘Cats, where he shot 67 (-4), his best round of the spring season, which helped him finish tied for first in the tournament shooting 208 (-5) across the two days. Not only was this Zerfass’s best round of the spring season, but it was the best round of all players on day two of the intercollegiate.
“Matt has really carried momentum from the end of the fall winning the Big 5 Championship into this spring,” assistant coach Patrick Aylward said. “He has really become a closer in these strong fields and shown that when his game is sharp he can play with anyone.”
Pamer also made an impact in the final round for Villanova shooting 73 (+2), making him tied for ninth place after shooting 214 (+1) through all three rounds. Alokam improved his score from round two, shooting 72 (+1) in round three and ultimately finishing in 26th place. Alokam shot 219 (+6) throughout the tournament.
The intercollegiate hosts, William & Mary, took home first after shooting 850 (-2) over the two day stretch, beating Villanova by 13 strokes. The Griffins had three players that finished within the top ten on the leaderboard.
Navy Senior Jack Tarzy finished at the top of the leaderboard alongside Zerfass, who shot 208 (-5) across the two days.
The second place finish for Villanova is its best of the spring season so far. The ‘Cats will carry the momentum from the tournament throughout the rest of their season, as they have two more tournaments to play in before the Big East Championship begins on Saturday, May 2.
“The team is coming off two top five finishes and really gaining momentum at the right time of the year,” Aylward said. “We’ve seen some of the conference’s best teams recently and performed well, we’re going to continue to work hard over the next couple weeks and be ready for the Big East tournament.”
Up next for Villanova is its very own Wildcat/Fazio Invite, which will be played at Galloway National Golf Course in Galloway, NJ on April 6. The two day tournament will be another opportunity for the Wildcats to improve come the Big East Championship.
