Smalley sparks Duke to runaway win at Princeton Invitational

   Duke, No. 20 in the latest Golfstat rankings, turned the Princeton Invitational, played on a winter weekend in early April at Springdale Golf Club, into a runaway with a record-breaking second round Sunday.

   The 15-under 269 turned in by the Blue Devils was an 18-hole team record as the ACC representative seemed to thrive as cold and clear conditions replaced Saturday’s miserable weather that featured a cold rain with an occasional snowflake mixed in. Combined with its opening-round 274, Duke put up a 25-under 543 total and finished a whopping 34 shots ahead of runnerup Harvard.

Saturday’s awful conditions forced tournament officials to shorten the event from 54 holes to 36 holes, but there would be no catching the Dookies on this weekend.

   The Crimson emerged from a spirited battle in the mere-mortal division as Harvard added a 4-over 288 Sunday to an opening-round 289 to finish at 9-over 577, a shot ahead of a trio that included two of its Ivy League rivals, host Princeton (296-286) and Yale (289-289), and one of Duke’s ACC rivals, Georgia Tech (294-284).

   Duke’s Alex Smalley, a freshman from Wake Forest, N.C., fired the day’s best round, a sparkling 5-under 66 over the 6,424-yard, par-71 Springdale layout, to take individual honors at 8-under 134. He finished a shot ahead of teammates Max Greyserman (68-67), a junior from Short Hills, N.J. and a product of nearby Peddie School, and Jake Shuman (65-70), a sophomore from Needham, Mass., both of whom were at 7-under 135.

   Yale’s Li Wang, a junior from Sammamish, Wash., fired a 4-under 67, which, combined with an opening-round 71, earned him a fourth-place finish at 4-under 138 and led the Bulldogs to their share of third. Harvard’s runnerup finish was paced by Rohan Ramnath, a senior from Weston, Fla. who added a 70 to his opening round of 2-under 69 to finish fifth in the individual chase at 3-under 139.

   Princeton’s solid 2-over team total was led by Marc Hedrick, a sophomore from Encinitas, Calif. who fired a 3-under 68 and finished alone in sixth place at 2-under 140. Eric Mitchell, a sophomore from Winston-Salem, N.C., matched par with a 71 Sunday to finish tied for 16^th.

   Another sophomore, Michael Davis, the Aronimink Golf Club member and former Malvern Prep standout, fell back with a 75 after opening with a 71 in Saturday’s terrible weather, and finished 28^th at 4-over 146.

   Davis’ old Inter-Ac League rival, Georgetown sophomore Cole Berman, the former Haverford School standout, had a tough weekend. Berman, who defeated Davis in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s BMW Amateur Championship last summer at Llanerch Country Club, slipped to a 79 Sunday after opening with a 75 and finished tied for 63^rd at 154.

   Georgetown finished eighth in the team standings with rounds of 292 and 291 for a 583 total. The Hoyas were led by Sam Madsden, a sophomore from Madison, Wis. who finished tied for seventh with rounds of 71 and 70 for a 1-under 141 total.

   Penn, the reigning Ivy League champion, finished 10^th with a pair of 297 rounds and a 594 total. The Quakers were led by Carter Thompson, a sophomore from Tallahassee, Fla. who had rounds of 74 and 71 to finish tied for 20^th at 145.

   Saint Joseph’s finished 11^th with rounds of 301 and 295 and a 596 total. The Hawks were led by T.J. Summers, the senior who starred scholastically at Central Bucks West.  Summers finished tied for 16^th with rounds of 73 and 71 for a 2-over 144 total.

   Temple had a bit of a disappointing weekend, finishing 12^th with rounds of 301 and 299 for a 600 total. But the Owls got a strong showing from Trey Wren, a freshman from Suffolk, Va. who finished tied for 20^th with rounds of 72 and 73 for a 145 total.

   Sam Soeth, the Temple freshman who was a standout at Marple Newtown, competed as an individual  and matched par Sunday with a 71 to finish tied for 29^th at 147. That’s the kind of round that may have Temple coach Brian Quinn considering including Soeth among the team counters.

   Senior Brandon Matthews, one of the best players in the history of the Temple program, never got it going for the Owls at Springdale, posting rounds of 77 and 76 to finish tied for 59^th at 153. Matthews won the Philadelphia Open for the second time in three years last summer and reached the second stage of the PGA Tour Qualifying process last fall.