Villanova finishes third, Saint Joseph's in a tie for fourth in Alex Lagowitz Memorial

 

   It was a solid start to the wraparound 2025-2026 college golf season for Villanova and Saint Joseph’s at last weekend’s Alex Lagowitz Memorial, hosted by Colgate at Seven Oaks Golf Club in Hamilton, N.Y.

   The Wildcats, behind top-10 individual finishes by Ryan “Coop” Pamer, a senior from Hudson, Ohio who finished in a tie for fifth place, and senior Matt Zerfass, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Emmaus who finished in a tie for eighth, took third in the team standings with an 8-over-par 872 total.

   The Hawks, behind senior Christian Matt, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Wissahickon who joined Zerfass in the group tied for eighth place, ended up in a tie for fourth place with Bucknell a shot behind Villanova at 9-over 873.

   Pamer was Villanova’s best player last season with a pair of individual victories, including a win in the Big 5 Championship at Aronimink Golf Club last fall, matched par in the final round with a 72 Sunday over the 7,125-yard, par-72 Seven Oaks layout to finish with an even-par 288 total.

   Pamer opened with a 2-over 74 before adding a 2-under 70 in the second round. The second round, scheduled to be completed as part of a Saturday double round, didn’t wrap up until Sunday morning as darkness halted play late in the day Saturday.

   Zerfass closed with a 2-under 70 to finish among the group tied for eighth place at 1-over 217. Zerfass, who began his college career at St. Joe’s before transferring to the Main Line a year ago, opened with a 2-over 74 before adding a 1-over 73 in the second round.

   St. Joe’s Matt closed with a 1-under 71 to join Zerfass in the group at 1-over. He had opened with a 2-under 70, but struggled a little in the second round with a 4-over 76.

   The team crown went to Lehigh, a Patriot League representative, as the Mountain Hawks pulled away with a final round of 5-under 283 to finish with an 8-under 856 total.

   Lehigh opened with a 3-under 285 before matching par in the second round with a 288.

   It was the second tournament of the new season for Lehigh, which was coming off a sixth-place finish in the Red Bandana Invitational, hosted by Boston College at the Turning Stone Resort in Verona, N.Y. over the Labor Day weekend. The Mountain Hawks wrapped up the 2024-’25 season with an eighth-place finish in the Patriot League Championship in the spring at the Bucknell Golf Club.

   Lehigh’s victory was fueled by a 1-2 finish in the individual standings by Noah Zyung, a sophomore from Glenview, Ill., and Ryan Cronin, a freshman from Eden Prairie, Minn.

   Zyung pulled away from the field with a final round of 6-under 66 to claim the individual crown by six shots with a 9-under 207 total.

   Zyung had opened with a 4-under 68 and added a 1-over 73 in the second round. He trailed his teammate Cronin and St. Joe’s freshman Michael Henry Jr., a scholastic standout at Malvern Prep, by a shot going into the final round.

   Cronin carded back-to-back 2-under 70s in the first two rounds before closing with a 1-over 73 that left him six shots behind Zyung in second place with a 3-under 213 total.

   Seton Hall, one of Villanova’s Big East rivals, finished seven shots behind Lehigh in second place with a 1-under 863 total.

   After opening with a 4-over 292, the Pirates posted the best team round of the tournament, a 7-under 281, in the second round before closing with a 2-over 290.

   Seton Hall was led by Will Hennessee, a sophomore from Tulsa, Okla. who finished in fourth place in the individual chase with a 1-under 215 total.

   After opening with a 4-over 76, Hennessee tallied a sizzling 6-under 66 in the second round before closing with a 1-over 73.

   Villanova opened with a 7-over 295 and matched par in the second round with a 288 before closing with a 1-over 289 as the Wildcats finished nine shots behind Seton Hall in third place with their 8-over total.

   Villanova wrapped up its 2024-’25 season by finishing in a tie for fourth place in the Big East Championship at Callawassie Island Golf Club in Okatie, S.C. Seton Hall finished in ninth place at Callawassie Island.

   Saint Joseph’s, an Atlantic 10 representative, opened with a 5-under 283 that had the Hawks at the top of the leaderboard following the first round. The Hawks added a 5-over 293 in the second round before closing with a 9-over 297 to share fourth place with Bucknell at 9-over.

   St. Joe’s wrapped up its 2024-’25 season by finishing in a tie for 11^th place in the A-10 Championship at the Evermore Resort’s Cypress Course in Orlando, Fla. in the spring.

   Bucknell, one of Lehigh’s Patriot League rivals, opened with a solid 2-under 286 and added a 4-over 292 in the second round before finishing up with a 7-over 295 to join Saint Joseph’s at 9-over.

   The Bison were led by Jack Hartman, a sophomore from Bethesda, Md. who finished in third place in the individual standings with a 2-under 214 total. Hartman put together a pair of steady 1-under 71s in the first two rounds before matching par in the final round with a 72.

   Penn, out of the Ivy League, finished in ninth place in the 14-team field with a 26-over 890 total.

   The Quakers added a solid 3-over 291 in the second round to their opening round of 10-over 298 before struggling to a 301 in the final round.

   Penn wrapped up its 2024-’25 season by finishing in sixth place in the Ivy League Championship at Rolling Green Golf Club, the William Flynn gem in the heart of Delco in Springfield.

   Backing up Zyung and Cronin for Lehigh was Wilson Caronchi, a senior from Willow Springs, Ill. who finished among the group tied for 16^th place with a 3-over 219 total. Caronchi was steady, matching par in the second round with a 72 after opening with a 1-over 73 before closing with a 2-over 74.

   Drew Golden, a freshman from Hingham, Mass., finished in the group tied for 27^th place for the Mountain Hawks with an 8-over 224 total. Golden added a 4-over 76 in the second round to his opening-round 74 before matching par in the final round with a 72.

   Matthew Quinn, a junior from Holden, Mass., finished among the group tied for 42^nd place with a 9-over 225 total as he finished strong, matching par in the final round with a 72. Quinn had opened with a 5-over 77 before adding a 76 in the second round.

   Looks like teams were allowed a sixth player in their lineups, always a good idea early in the season when coaches are still trying to find out exactly what they have under tournament conditions.

   Rounding out the Lehigh lineup was senior Aiden Leblanc, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier in 2021 as a senior at Emmaus who ended up in the group tied for 71^st place at 232. Leblanc followed up an opening round of 6-over 78 with a solid 1-over 73 in the second round before struggling to an 81 in the final round.

   Joining Villanova’s Pamer in the trio tied for fifth place in the individual standings at even-par were Binghamton’s Jackson Vesper, a junior from The Colony, Texas, and host Colgate’s Jamison Bryant, a sophomore from Milton, Ga.

   Vesper added a 1-under 71 in the second round to his opening round of 1-over 73 before matching par in the final round with a 72. Bryant matched par in the second round with a 72 after opening with a 1-under 71 and finished up with a 1-over 73.

   Joining Villanova’s Zerfass and St. Joe’s Matt in the trio tied for eighth place at 1-over was Seton Hall’s George Fricker, a graduate student from England who bounced back from an opening round of 3-over 75 with a 2-under 70 in the second round before matching par in the final round with a 72.

   Backing up Pamer and Zerfass for Villanova was Brockton English, a graduate student from Shelby Township, Mich. who finished among the group tied for 16^th place at 3-over 219.

   English, who transferred to the Main Line from Drexel for his final year of eligibility, recorded three straight 1-over 73s.

   Luke Leonard, a freshman from Jupiter, Fla. and the son of 1997 Open Championship winner Justin Leonard, finished in the group tied for 27^th place with a 6-over 222 total for the Wildcats. Leonard sandwiched an even-par 72 in the second round with a pair of 3-over 75s.

   Vibhav Alokam, a sophomore from Ypsilanti, Mich., finished among the group tied for 34^th place with a 7-over 223 total as he added a solid 1-over 73 in the second round to his opening-round 76 before closing with a 74.

   Rounding out the Villanova lineup was Joshua Lavely, a senior from Kewadin, Mich. who finished in a tie for 71^st place with a 228 total. After opening with a 2-over 74, Lavely tallied a pair of 5-over 77s in the final two rounds.

   Backing up Matt for Saint Joseph’s was Henry, who finished among the group tied for 21^st place at 4-over 220 in his college debut.

   Watched Henry finish in second place in the Bert Linton Invitational for the Inter-Ac League’s individual championship at Aronimink Golf Club as a junior in the fall of 2023, so not totally surprised to see that the former Malvern Prep standout was in contention after two rounds of the Alex Lagowitz.

   Henry opened with a sparkling 3-under 69 and added a 1-under 71 in the second round to get a share of the lead with Lehigh’s Cronin going into the final round at 4-under. Henry struggled in the final round with an 80, but the Hawks have a good one in the talented left-hander.

   The Hawks had two of the players in the group tied for 27^th place in junior Noah Moelter, who finished in a tie for sixth place in the 2022 PIAA Class AAA Championship as a senior at Central Bucks South, and another freshman in George Williamson Jr. of Sykesville, Md.

   Moelter opened with a 1-over 73 and added a 75 in the second round before closing with a 74. Williamson matched par in the opening round with a 72 in his college debut and added a 2-over 74 in the second round before closing with a 76.

   Another player making his college debut for the Hawks was Sam Feeney, whose outstanding scholastic career at West Chester Rustin was highlighted by a District One Class AAA individual crown as a junior in 2023.

   Feeney matched par in the opening round at Seven Oaks with a 72 and added a 3-over 75 in the second round before closing with a 78.

   Rounding out the St. Joe’s lineup was junior Tyler Leyden, who starred scholastically at Catholic League power La Salle. Leyden righted the ship after an opening-round 85 as he posted a 1-over 73 in the second round before closing with a solid 1-under 71 to finish in the group tied for 80^th place at 234.

   Leading the way for Penn was Ryan Chang, a sophomore from Brookline, Mass. who ended up just outside the top 10, finishing in the group tied for 11^th place with a 2-over 218 total. Chang added a solid 2-under 70 in the second round to his opening round of 1-over 73 before closing with a 75.

   Backing up Chang for the Quakers was Hayden Adams, a junior from Lexington, Ky. who finished among the group tied for 34^th place with a 7-over 223 total. Adams sandwiched a 1-over 73 in the second round with a pair of 75s.

   Kayden Wang, a freshman from San Diego, Calif., finished among a trio tied for 51^st place at 10-over 226 for the Quakers. After opening with a 2-over 74, Wang tallied back-to-back 76s in the final two rounds.

   Max Fonseca, a junior from Miami, Fla., finished in the group tied for 64^th place with a 230 total as he opened with a 4-over 76 and added a 79 in the second round before closing with a 75.

   Arjun Caprihan, a freshman from Short Hills, N.J., finished among a trio tied for 69^th place with a 231 total as he matched par in the second round with a solid 72 after opening with a 6-over 78 before struggling to an 81 in the final round.

   Rounding out the Penn lineup was Owen Hayes, a senior from Bedford Hills, N.Y. who finished in 92^nd place with a 246 total. Hayes never got it going at Seven Oaks, adding an 81 in the second round to his opening-round 80 before closing with an 85.

   Solid showing for Seton Hall junior Eli Shah, who had back-to-back top-10 finishes in his final two seasons at Penncrest in 2021 and 2022. Shah finished among the group tied for 21^st place at 4-over 220 for the Pirates as he closed with a solid 1-under 71. Shah had opened with a 3-over 75 before adding a 74 in the second round.

   Another former Central League standout, Strath Haven product Tyler Debusschere, finished among the group tied for 34^th place for Ivy League entry Cornell at 230. Debusschere, a junior who was a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior with the Panthers in 2022, posted back-to-back 4-over 76s in the first two rounds before closing with a 78.

   The Big Red finished in 12^th place in the team standings with a 30-over 894 total.