Huntzinger leads Penn State to share of title in Windon Memorial Classic

   Penn State is starting to look like the team that took its 2016-’17 season all the way to the NCAA Championship at Rich Harvest Farms.

   Greg Nye’s Nittany Lions carded a final round of 2-under 278 to share the team title with hard-charging host Northwestern in the Windon Memorial Classic, which concluded Monday at Evanston Golf Club in Skokie, Ill.

   Play wasn’t quite complete in Sunday’s attempted double-round, but Penn State held the lead when play was suspended. The Nittany Lions had opened with an even-par 280 over the 6,793-yard,  par-70 Evanston layout and ended up surging to a second-round total of 3-under 277. 

   When the second round was completed Monday morning, the Nittany Lions took a two-shot edge over Iowa into the final round. Their final-round 278 left them at 5-under 835, but Big Ten rival Northwestern came on strong with a 7-under 273 to catch Penn State at 835.

   Another Big Ten entry, Indiana, was four shots behind the co-champions in third at 1-under 839 after a final round of 1-under 279. Iowa State, out of the Big 12, also broke par in the final round with a 2-under 278 to finish fourth at 5-over 845.

   Reigning Big East champion Marquette and Miami of Ohio finished tied for fifth at 8-over 848. Marquette matched par in the final round at 280 while Miami of Ohio, which opened with the best round of the tournament, an 8-under 272, had a final round of 285.

   Princeton finished strong with a 1-over 289 to end up ninth in the 15-team field at 858.

   Penn State was led by Charles Huntzinger, a junior from Duluth, Ga. who finished among a group off five players tied for fifth at 2-under 208. Huntzinger contributed a 3-under 67 to the Lions’ second-round 277 and finished up with an even-par 70.

   Ryan Davis, a sophomore from Berkeley Heights, N.J. who was such a big part of Penn State’s run to Rich Harvest Farms as a freshman, finished tied for eighth at 1-under 209. He sandwiched a 1-under 69 in the  middle round with a pair of even-par 70s.

   Junior Ryan Dornes, the Manheim Township product who missed the postseason last spring after suffering an untimely injury, finished up with a 2-under 68 Monday to end up tied for 10^th at even-par 210.

   Senior Cole Miller, the former Northwestern Lehigh standout who claimed the individual title in the NCAA Washington Regional last spring, finished tied for 13^th at 1-over 211. He had a 1-under 69 in Penn State’s key second round and added a final-round 72.

   Junior J.D. Hughes, the Carlisle product who won the Pennsylvania Amateur title at White Manor Country Club this summer, finished tied for 29^th at 5-over 215. His final round of even-par 70 was a crucial counter.

   Northwestern was led by Everton Hawkins, a sophomore from Irvine, Calif. who shared third place with Iowa State’s Lachlan Barker, a freshman from Australia, at 3-under 207. Hawkins fired a final round of 3-under 67.

   Teammate Dylan Wu, a senior from Medford, Ore., joined Penn State’s Huntzinger in the group tied for fifth at 2-under 208. Wu matched Hawkins’ final-round 67.

   Sam Triplett, a freshman from Scottsdale, Ariz., finished tied for 13^th at 1-over 211 after firing a pair of 1-under 69s in each of the last two rounds. Ryan Lamsden, a junior from England, finished tied for 17^th at 2-over 212, contributing a 4-under 66 in the opening round.

   Luke Miller, a junior from Venetia, Pa., finished tied for 50^th at 9-over 219, but his second-round 73 was a counter. And his even-par 70 in the final round, one shot better than Lamsden’s 71, also counted. And how big was that one shot in helping the Wildcats get a share of the Windon Memorial title?

   Miami of Ohio’s Patrick Flavin, a senior from Highland, Ill., and Indiana’s Brendon Doyle, a senior from Louisville, Ky., shared individual medalist honors, each finishing up at 4-under 206.

   Flavin opened up with a sizzling 5-under 65, added a 72 in the second round and finished up with a 1-under 69. Doyle finished up strong with a 5-under 65 in the final round after opening up with rounds of 69 and 72.

   Iowa State’s Barker sandwiched a 3-under 67 in the middle round with a pair of even-par 70s to join Northwestern’s Hawkins in a tie for third at 3-under 207.

   Iowa’s Alex Schaake, a sophomore from Omaha, Neb., joined Northwestern’s Wu and Penn State’s Huntzinger in the tie for fifth at 2-under 208 with a final round of even-par 70.

   Joining Penn State’s Davis in the tie for eighth at 1-under 209 was Indiana’s Jake Brown, a redshirt junior from Carmel, Ind. Brown beat par in each of his first two rounds with a 68 and a 69 before finishing up with a 2-over 72.

   Princeton was led by Evan Quinn, a sophomore from Morristown, N.J. who finished tied for 23^rd at 4-over 214. Quinn’s even-par 70 in the second round included a 5-iron shot at the 202-yard fourth hole that found the bottom of the cup for an ace.

   Sophomore Vinay Ramesh, the 2014 PIAA Class AAA champion as a senior at Pennsbury, fired a final round of 1-under 69 to finish tied for 33^rd at 216. Ramesh defeated Penn State’s Dornes in a playoff to win that state title at Heritage Hills.

   Another shot back at 7-over 217 in a tie for 38^th for Princeton was senior Michael Davis, a Malvern Prep product and runnerup in the 2015 BMW Philadelphia Amateur. Davis finished up with a final round of 2-over 72.