VanArragon leads Valparaiso to team title in The Invitation at Savannah Harbor

   Valparaiso put together a solid final round of 3-under-par 285 at The Club of Savannah Harbor in Savannah, Ga. to hold off Wright State and claim a two-shot victory in The Invitation at Savannah Harbor, which wrapped up Sunday.

   Valparaiso’s 5-over 869 total was the third best in program history and it marked the first time the Crusaders have ever prevailed over a field of 10 or more teams.

   It was a pretty strong spring debut for Delaware, which shared the lead with Valparaiso after Saturday’s double-round at 8-over 584 before falling back into a fourth-place finish with a final round of 7-over 295.

   Valparaiso, out of the Missouri Valley Conference, started slowly with a 301 in the opening session of Saturday’s double-round, but bounced back in the afternoon with a 5-under 283 that earned the Crusaders a share of the lead with Delaware.

   Wright State, out of Horizon League, had the best team round of the tournament, a 6-under 282, in Sunday’s final round to finish two shots behind Valparaiso at 7-over 871. The Raiders were led by individual champion Austin Schoonmaker, a senior from Springboro, Ohio who added a pair of 2-under 70s to the opening round of 3-under 69 he registered over the 6,918-yard, par-72 Savannah Harbor layout for a 7-under 209 total.

   Francis Marion closed with a 3-over 291 to finish alone in third place at 14-over 878 total.

   Delaware, behind individual runnerup Hugo Kidzlie, a freshman from England, finished a shot behind Francis Marion in fourth place at 15-over 879. The Blue Hens, the fifth-place finisher in last spring’s Colonial Athletic Association Championship, were solid in Saturday’s double-round, posting rounds of 6-over 294 and 2-over 290.

   Florida A&M closed with a solid 1-over 289 to finish two shots behind Delaware in fifth place at 17-over 881.

   It was a decent start to the spring portion of the 2019-2020 season for Saint Joseph’s as the Hawks, out of the Atlantic 10, finished up with a solid 2-under 286 to end up in sixth place in the 19-team field, a shot behind Florida A&M with an 18-over 882 total. St. Joe’s opened with rounds of 299 and 297 in Saturday’s double-round.

   Valparaiso was led by Caleb VanArragon, a freshman from Blaine, Minn. who finished alone in third place at 4-under 212, three shots behind Schoonmaker. VanArragon was steady throughout, opening with a 2-under 70 and adding a pair of 1-under 71s.

   Backing up VanArragon for Valparaiso was Charlie Toman, a sophomore from Chardon, Ohio who finished among the group tied for 17^th place at 4-over 220. Toman’s final round of even-par 72 was one of four of par or better the Crusaders posted Sunday.

   Jack Juskow, a senior from Greenville, S.C., closed with a 3-over 75 that Valparaiso was able to toss as he finished among the group tied for 23^rd place at 5-over 221. Juskow, however, fired the low round of the tournament over the Savannah Harbor layout with a 5-under 67 in Saturday afternoon’s second round that was one of the keys to the Crusaders’ victory.

   Garrett Willis, a sophomore from Fort Wayne, Ind., and Brett Seward, a junior from Aurora, Ill., both had strong finishes and landed among the group tied for 45^th place at 8-over 224. Willis carded a 2-under 70 while Seward matched par with a 72 in Sunday’s final round. Willis had opened with an 82, but quickly put that round behind him by matching par Saturday afternoon with a 72.

   Delaware’s Kidzlie kept the heat on Schoonmaker the entire tournament. Kidzlie trailed by a shot after posting a pair of 2-under 70s in Saturday’s double-round. He closed with a 1-under 71 to finish two shots behind Schoonmaker at 5-under 211.

   Two players, Bethune-Cookman’s Christian Hovstadius, a senior from Sweden, and Francis Marion’s McClure Thompson, a sophomore from Little River, S.C., shared fourth place, three shots behind Valparaiso’s VanArragon at 1-under 215.

   Hovstadius’ final round of 4-under 68 matched the low round of the day while Thompson closed with a 2-over 74.

   Bradley’s Alex Ciaramitaro, a redshirt senior from Peters, Mo., Iona’s Oisin Deveruex, a senior from Ireland, and Northern Kentucky’s Ty DeBonis, a junior from Cincinnati, finished in a tie for sixth place, each landing on even-par 216.

   Ciaramitaro also matched the low total for Sunday’s final round with a 4-under 68 while Deveruex and DeBonis each closed with a 1-under 71.

   Backing up Kidzlie for Delaware was senior Jack Melville, who starred scholastically at Upper Dublin. Melville closed with his best round of the weekend, a 1-over 73, to finish among the group tied for 29^th place at 222.

   Matt Pulgini, a sophomore from Middletown, Del., contributed an even-par 72 to the Blue Hens’ best team round, Saturday’s afternoon session, on his way to joining the group tied for 53^rd place at 225. Michal Bargenda, a freshman from Poland, was a shot behind Pulgini in the group tied for 57^th place at 226 after closing with a 76. Bargenda’s best effort was a 1-over 73 in Saturday morning’s opening round.

   Rounding out the Delaware lineup was Roberto Nieves, a sophomore from Miami, Fla. who finished among the group tied for 71^st place at 230. Nieves carded a solid 1-over 73 in Saturday afternoon’s second round, but struggled to a throw-out 80 in Sunday’s final round.

   Leading the way for Saint Joseph’s was Michael O’Brien, a senior from West Chester, Ohio who was coming off a solid fall campaign. O’Brien won the individual title in the Old Dominion/Outer Banks Intercollegiate with a scintillating final round of 10-under 61 at the Kilmarlic Golf Club in Powell’s Point, N.C. and was the runnerup in the Homewood/Hilton Garden Airport Classic after losing in a playoff at the Old Corkscrew Golf Club in Estero, Fla.

   O’Brien closed with a 3-under 69 in the final round at Savannah Harbor to end up among the group tied for 13^th place at 3-over 219. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, O’Brien struggled in a 78 in Saturday afternoon’s second round.

   Senior Richard Riva, a Lancaster Catholic product, and sophomore J.T. Spina, who was a PIAA Class AAA Championship qualifier in each of his last two years at Pope John Paul II, both landed among the group tied for 17^th place at 4-over 220.

   After opening with a 78, Riva carded a pair of 1-under 71s. Spina had a pair of matching 75s in Saturday’s double-round before closing with a 2-under 70.

   Junior Wills Montgomery, who was a scholastic standout at Downingtown East, and senior Tommy Lewis, a Central Bucks East product, both ended up in the group tied for 63^rd place at 228.  Montgomery’s best round was a 1-over 73 Saturday afternoon and he closed with a 77. Lewis opened with a 2-over 74 and finished up with a 76 that was the final counter for the Hawks Sunday.

   Brown, out of the Ivy League, finished in 17^th place with a 917 total. Freshman Luca Jezzeny, who finished eighth in the 2018 PIAA Class AAA Championship as a senior at Central Bucks West, closed with a 1-over 73 as he led the way for the Bears, finishing among the group tied for 53^rd place at 225.