VCU takes team title in Golden Horseshoe by four shots; Old Dominion's Henriksson runs away with individual crown

    The last time an Atlantic 10 Championship was staged in the spring of 2019 at the Grand Cypress Golf Club in Orlando, Fla., it was Virginia Commonwealth that landed at the top of the team leaderboard and earned the A-10’s automatic berth into the NCAA regionals.

   The Rams appear to be gearing up for a run at another A-10 crown as they pulled out a four-shot victory over Old Dominion in the 43^rd annual Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate, which wrapped up Tuesday at Golden Horseshoe’s Gold Course in Williamsburg, Va. VCU opened with an 11-over 291 over the 6,799-yard, par-70 Gold Course layout and then took control of the team race with a 3-over 283 in the afternoon round of Monday’s double round. A final round of 5-over 285 left the Rams with a 19-over 859 total.

   Behind individual champion Jakob Henriksson, a freshman from Sweden, Old Dominion, a Conference USA entry, earned runnerup honors with a 23-over 863 total. The Monarchs grabbed the lead with an opening round of 2-over 282. They fell three shots behind VCU with a 15-over 295 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 6-over 286.

   Henriksson was the only player in the field who really figured out Golden Horseshoe’s East Course as he seized control of the individual lead with an opening round of 4-under 66 and added a 2-over 72 in Monday afternoon’s second before closing with a 3-under 67. He was the only player to finish under par for the tournament with a 5-under 205 total that left him six shots clear of the rest of the field.

   Host William & Mary, a Colonial Athletic Association entry, finished another eight shots behind ODU in third place with a 31-over 871 total. The Tribe was consistent, adding a 12-over 292 to their opening-round 291 before finishing up with an 8-over 288.

   Two of VCU’s A-10 rivals, George Washington and Richmond, shared fourth place, a shot behind William & Mary at 32-over 872. The Colonials shaved 11 shots off their opening-round 296 with a 5-over 285 in Monday afternoon’s second round before closing with an 11-over 291. After opening with a 297, the Spiders ripped off the low team round of the tournament, a 1-over 281, in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 294.

   It was a pretty nice showing for Brian Quinn’s Temple Owls, who play in the tough American Athletic Conference. Behind senior Dawson Anders, a former Souderton standout who finished in a tie for third place in the individual standings at 2-over 212, Temple finished alone in sixth place, four shots behind George Washington and Richmond with a 36-over 876 total.

   The Owls struggled a little in Monday’s double round, adding a 294 to their opening-round 297, but posted a 5-over 285 in Tuesday’s final round as Anders and junior Conor McGrath, an Academy of the New Church product, each fired a sparkling 3-under 67.

   CAA rivals Drexel and Delaware accounted for the next two spots in the team standings, the Dragons finishing in seventh place with a 41-over 881 total that was five shots behind City 6 rival Temple and the Blue Hens finishing 11 more shots behind Drexel in eighth place with a 52-over 892 total.

   Drexel, coming off a nice win in the Don Benbow Invitational at the Jacksonville Beach Golf Course in Jacksonville Beach, Fla., bounced back from an opening round of 298 with a 292 in Monday afternoon’s second round before closing with an 11-over 291. Delaware, getting a pair of top-10 finishes from Roberto Nieves, a senior from Miami, Fla. who shared third place with Temple’s Anders at 2-over 212, and Hugo Kedzlie, a sophomore from England who finished in a tie for seventh place at 4-over 214, struggled to a 305 in the opening round and added a 294 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 293.

   Saint Joseph’s, another A-10 entry, finally got on the golf course for its first tournament in more than a year and was understandably rusty as the Hawks finished in 15^th place in the 16-team field with a 76-over 916 total. Freshman Kevin Smith, who led Strath Haven to the first Central League and District One Class AAA team titles in program history in the fall of 2019, made a solid college debut for Saint Joseph’s, finishing in a tie for 29^th place with a 12-over 222 total.

   The Hawks improved by 12 shots off an opening-round 308 with a 296 in Monday afternoon’s second round before struggling to a 312 in Tuesday’s final round.

   Leading the way for VCU was Adrian Vagburg, a junior from Sweden who finished in a tie for fifth place with a 3-over 213 total. After opening with a 74, Vagburg, who finished in a tie for fifth in the Rams’ 2019 A-10 Championship victory, carded a solid 1-under 69 in Monday afternoon’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 70.

   Two more Rams cracked the top 10 in the individual standings as Sachin Kumar, a senior from Trinidad & Tobago, and Joe Retford, a freshman from England, were among a group of six players who finished in a tie for 10^th place at 6-over 216. After opening with a 75, Kumar matched par with a 70 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 71. Retford opened with a 72 and added a 1-over 71 in Monday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 73.

   Kristian Tennum Donaldson, a senior from England, contributed a 1-over 71 to VCU’s strong final-round showing that left him among the group tied for 25^th place with a 221 total. Tennum Donaldson opened with a 77 and added a 73 in Monday afternoon’s second round.

   Rounding out the VCU lineup was Peter Gasperini, a senior from South Boston, Mass. whose opening round of even-par 70 made him the Rams’ medalist for the round. He backed off with a 75 in Monday afternoon’s second round and struggled in the final round with a 79 that left him in the group tied for 39^th place at 224.

   Nobody could keep up with Henriksson in the individual chase, but Richmond’s Lou Baker, a sophomore from Timonium, Md., earned runnerup honors with a 1-over 211 total that left him six shots behind the winner. Baker only trailed Henriksson by a shot after adding a 70 to his opening round of 1-under 69 in Monday’s double round. He finished up with a 2-over 72.

   Temple’s Anders, winner of the 2017 Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Boys Championship, added a 73 to his opening-round 72 in Monday’s double round before matching Henriksson’s final-round 67 to get his share of third place, a shot behind Baker. Delaware’s Nieves also had a 3-under 67, his coming in Monday afternoon’s second round that enabled him to creep within two shots of Henriksson’s lead. Nieves, who had opened with a 73, closed with a 72 to land in the tie for third with Anders at 2-over.

   Joining VCU’s Vagburg in the tie for fifth place at 3-over 213 was Richmond’s Carter Cook, a junior from Cornelius, N.C. who was competing as an individual. After registering a pair of 2-over 72s in Monday’s double round, Cook finished up with a solid 1-under 69.

   Delaware’s Kedzlie opened with a 73 before matching par in the second round with a 70 in Monday afternoon’s second round. He closed with a 71 to share seventh place with George Washington’s Ty Sullivan, a sophomore from Canada, at 4-over 214. Sullivan carded a 1-under 69 in Monday afternoon’s second round after opening with a 72 and finished up with a 73.

   William & Mary’s Preston Ball, a graduate student from Raleigh, N.C., finished alone in ninth place with a 5-over 215 total after he sandwiched a 1-over 71 in Monday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 72s.

   Two of Ball’s William & Mary teammates, Trevor Binau, a sophomore from Columbus, Ohio, and Matthew Feinstein, a junior from McLean, Va., joined the six-player logjam, that included VCU’s Kumar and Retford, tied for 10^th place at 6-over 216. Binau added a 73 to his opening-round 71 before closing with a 72. Feinstein struggled in Monday afternoon’s second round with a 77 after matching par in the opening round with a 70, but he finished strong with a 1-under 69 in Tuesday’s final round.

   Rounding out the group of six at 6-over were George Washington’s Jakub Hrinda, a sophomore from Slovakia, and St. Bonaventure’s Danny Gianniny, a senior from Pittsford, N.Y. Hrinda got it going in Monday afternoon’s second round with a 1-under 69 after opening with a 75 and finished up with a 72. Gianniny matched par in Monday afternoon’s second round with a 70 after opening with a 72 and closed with a 74.

   Backing up Anders for Temple was fifth-year player Peter Bradbeer, who starred at Bucknell and decided to take the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA to make up for the spring of 2020 lost to the coronavirus pandemic with the Owls. Bradbeer, a Friends Central product who plays out of Merion Golf Club, has a GAP major championship on his resume as he captured the Joseph H. Patterson Cup on Wilmington Country Club’s South Course in 2017.

   Bradbeer was solid in Monday’s double round, adding a 73 to his opening-round 72, but struggled a little in the final round with a 77 that left him among the group tied for 29^th place at 222.

   McGrath, a product of the junior program at Huntingdon Valley Country Club, struggled in Monday’s double round, opening with an 83 before adding a 76 in the afternoon. The same guy erupted for that final round of 3-under 67 that left him in the group tied for 45^th place at 226. Also in that group was teammate Buddy Hansen, a junior who starred scholastically at Catholic League power La Salle. Hansen, a product of the Blue Bell Country Club junior program, also struggled in the opening round with an 80, but bounced back with a 72 in Monday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 74.

   Rounding out the Temple lineup was Graham Chase, a sophomore from Charlotte, N.C. who added a 76 to his opening-round 73 and finished up with a 79 to finish among the group tied for 54^th place at 229.

   Leading the way for Drexel was senior Connor Schmidt, a Peters Township product and winner of the 2018 Pennsylvania Amateur Championship at Johnstown’s Sunnehanna Country Club. After a pair of 74s in Monday’s double round, Schmidt closed with a 1-over 71 in Tuesday’s final round to land among the group tied for 19^th place with a 9-over 219 total.

   Senior Alex Butler, a St. Joseph’s Prep product who has been playing some good golf in this shortened season, was a shot behind Schmidt in the group tied for 22^nd place at 220. After opening with a 77, Butler posted solid rounds of 1-over 71 in Monday afternoon’s second round and 72 in Tuesday’s final round.

   Angelo Giantsopolouis, a senior from Canada, was coming off his first collegiate victory in the Don Benbow Invitational. He added a pair of 3-over 73s to his opening-round 74 to land among the group tied for 29^th place at 222.

   A couple of PIAA Class AAA champions from Holy Ghost Prep rounded out the Drexel lineup as senior Stephen Cerbara, who won the state title in 2015 as a senior with the Firebirds, and sophomore Liam Hart, the 2017 state champion as a junior, finished in a tie for 37^th place at 223 and in a tie for 41^st place at 225, respectively, for the Dragons. Cerbara added a 74 to his opening-round 76 before closing with a 3-over 73. Hart opened with a 4-over 74 and added a 75 before finishing up with a 76.

   Delaware struggled a little behind its pair of top-seven finishers. Senior R.J. Wren, who finished in seventh place behind Cerbara in the 2015 PIAA Class AAA Championship as a senior at Twin Valley, bounced back from rounds of 79 and 80 in Monday’s double round with a final round of 4-over 74 as he finished alone in 68^th place at 233.

   Michael Berganda, a sophomore from Poland, added a final-round 76 to the pair of 80s he posted in Monday’s double round to finish among the group tied for 71^st place at 236. Rounding out the Delaware lineup was Owen Manchester, a freshman from Irvine, Calif. who finished alone in 74^th place as he added a 77 to his opening-round 82 and closed with a 78.

   Elliot Haas, a freshman from Dickerson, Md., competed as an individual for the Blue Hens and finished among the group tied for 76^th place at 240. Haas opened with a 79, but struggled to an 84 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 77.

   St. Joe’s Smith, a product of the junior program at The Springhaven Club, finally got his college career started. After opening with a 75, he carded a solid 1-over 71 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 76 as he landed among the group tied for 29^th place at 222.

   Junior J.T. Spina, who qualified for the PIAA Class AAA Championship in each of his last two seasons at Pope John Paul II, backed up Smith as he sandwiched a 3-over 73 in Monday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 76s to finish in the group tied for 41^st place at 225.

   Senior Wills Montgomery, the Downingtown East product who had a pretty nice junior season going when the pandemic struck a year ago, finished among the group tied for 57^th place with a 229 total. Montgomery added a 3-over 73 to his opening round 75 before struggling to a final-round 81.

   James Gorman, a freshman from Greenville, S.C., added a pair of 79s to his opening-round 82 for the Hawks to finish in the group tied for 76^th place at 240. Rounding out the St. Joe’s lineup was Matt Avery, a junior from Avon, Conn. who finished in a tie for 86^th place with a 258 total. After opening with an 88, Avery added an 84 in Monday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with an 86 in Tuesday’s final round.