On Tuesday, April 14, Villanova men’s golf closed out its regular season at the Pete Dye Golf Club, earning 11th place out of 19 teams competing at the Mountaineer Invitational in Bridgeport, WV.
The result follows their home victory at the Wildcat Fazio Invite at the Galloway National Golf Course on April 7.
The 54-hole event started with 36 holes on Monday, followed by the final 18 on Tuesday.
On day one, Villanova finished in 12th out of 19 through the first 36 holes, shooting 303 (+15) in the first round and 258 (+3) in the second round, leaving them at 561 (+18) after the first day.
Coming off a second place finish at the Wildcat Invitational, Senior Ryan Pamer was the first to hit off the tee for the ‘Cats. In round one, he finished shooting par, 72 (E). In round two he improved and shot 69 (-3), where he birdied seven of 18 holes, leaving him with a score of 134 (-3) earning him a tie for seventh place following day one of the tournament.
Fifth-year Brockton English followed for Villanova, shooting 143 (+6) and finishing the day in 50th. Junior Nathan Marion shot 147 (+10) coming in at 77th.
Senior Matt Zerfass struggled on day one and finished in 84th after shooting 146 (+11). In round one he shot 81 (+9), followed by 74 (+2) in the second round. Sophomore Vibhav Alokam rounded out the results for the Wildcats, shooting 148 (+13) and finishing the day in 87th.
“We are very happy with the way the whole team has performed the last few weeks,” assistant coach Patrick Aylward said. “We are playing our best golf at the right time of the year.”
On the final day of the tournament Villanova shot 293 (+5) in the final round. Through the two day invitational the ‘Cats finished with a total of 889 (+25), earning them an 11th place finish. Clemson University took home the win at the Mountaineer Invitational shooting 844 (minus 20) as a team.
Pamer continued his success from day one into day two, shooting 70 (minus 2) in the final round where he eagled on hole six, and birdied three others. Overall Pamer shot 211 (minus 5) to earn himself a tie for sixth place.
“Coop’s top 5 finish in West Virginia against one of the strongest fields in college golf really shows he can play with anyone in the country,” Aylward said. “Playing two great golf courses in Galloway National and Pete Dye Golf Club in the last two weeks gives us a lot of confidence going into the Big East Championship.”
Alokam finished the final round shooting 72 (E), while Marion followed shooting 75 (+3). Both finished shooting 229 (+13) leaving them tied for 80th. English finished off the tournament shooting 228 (+12) to put him in 77th. Zerfass shot a 231 (+15) through both days putting him in 86th.
Junior Patrick Stout of Oklahoma State finished at the top of the leaderboard where he shot 205 (-11) through the three rounds.
With the invitational culminating tournament play for the spring season, Villanova now has a few weeks of practice to prepare for the Big East Championship which will begin May 2. The championship will take place over three days in Hardeeville, S.C at Riverton Pointe Golf and Country Club.
