Meyers, Sheehan help Penn State finish fall schedule strong

    It’s been three years since Jimmy Meyers and Patrick Sheehan contended for the PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort in Springettsbury Township, York County.

   Meyers was a senior at Pittsburgh Central Catholic and was the runnerup to western Pennsylvania rival Palmer Jackson of Franklin Regional. Sheehan was a senior at Central Bucks East and finished in a tie for third place at the state championship.

   This fall the Penn State juniors have displayed the kind of talent that just might help get the Nittany Lions back into the NCAA regionals next spring for the first time since 2017.

   Wrapping up the fall portion of the wraparound 2021-2022 season Tuesday in the final round of the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate at the Blackthorn Club at the Ridges in Jonesborough, Tenn., Penn State finished in eighth place in a field with some of college golf’s most underrated programs behind a runnerup finish in the individual standings by Meyers.

   Penn State head coach Greg Nye put together a schedule that included four tournaments in the last month, three of them in the last three weeks, and the Nittany Lions had solid showings at each stop. I had a little catching up to do with both Penn State and Villanova, which finished last of 15 teams in the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate.

   Meyers earned his spot in the lineup for the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate by finishing in a tie for eighth place while competing as an individual in the Mountaineer Invitational with a 3-over-par 213 total at the Pete Dye Golf Club in Bridgeport, W.Va.

   After opening with a 2-under 70 at the 7,147-yard, par-72 Blackthorn Club layout, Meyers moved into contention for the individual title with a sparkling 6-under 66 in Monday’s second round. Meyers closed with a 4-under 68 for a 12-under 204 total that left him a shot behind the individual winner, Georgia Southern’s Ben Carr, a senior from Columbus, Ga.

   It has, very simply, been a breakout year for Sheehan. He slept on the lead for two days in the Pennsylvania Amateur at Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course in July, lost the lead in the final round, but kept grinding. He had an eight-footer for birdie on the  final hole to force  a playoff after John Peters’ epic hole-out for eagle from 193 yards away, cut couldn’t get it to fall.

   He contended in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s final major championship of the summer, the Patterson Cup at Manufacturers Golf & Country Club, before finishing in a tie for second place. Sheehan and Meyers both represented Penn State in the U.S. Amateur Championship at the iconic Oakmont Country Club in the suburbs of Pittsburgh.

   Sheehan came into the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate on a serious roll. He had finished in a tie for second place in last week’s Mountaineer Invitational with a 10-under 206 total. Sheehan landed in a tie for ninth place against a top field in the Old Town Club Collegiate at the Old Town Club in Winston-Salem, N.C. with a 6-under 204 total.

   In another foray into the heart of Atlantic Coast Conference country, Sheehan finished in a tie for third place with a 9-under 207 total in the Rod Myers Invitational hosted by Duke at the Duke University Golf Club in Durham, N.C.

   Sheehan cooled off a little with a 2-over 74 in Sunday’s opening round at the Blackthorn Club, but bounced back with a 4-under 68 in Monday’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 72 as he finished among the group tied for 29^th place with a 2-undeere 214 total.

   Host East Tennessee State, out of the Southern Conference, rolled to a six-shot victory in the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate with a remarkable 35-under 829 total. Maybe it was a surprise last spring when the Buccaneers, seeded eighth, claimed the team crown in the NCAA Cle Elum Regional in Washington, but not anymore. East Tennessee State can play.

   The Bucs opened with an 11-under 277, went even lower with a 13-under 275 in Monday’s second round and closed with a bookend 11-under 277 to get it to 35-under.

   Charlotte, out of Conference USA, and the ACC’s Louisville, weren’t bad, as they finished in a tie for second place, each posting a 29-under 835 total, but they couldn’t keep up with East Tennessee State. After opening with an 8-under 280, the 49ers added a 10-under 278 in Monday’s second round before closing with an 11-under 277. The Cardinals, who qualified for the NCAA Championship last spring out of the Noblesville Regional at The Sagamore Club, were only two shots behind East Tennessee State following a pair of 11-under 277s in the first two rounds before backing off in the final round with a 7-under 281.

   Georgia Southern, out of the Sun Belt Conference, was another five shots behind Charlotte and Louisville in fourth place with a 24-under 840 total. The Eagles, behind Carr, the individual champion, had the best team round of the tournament, an eye-opening 14-under 274, in the final round. Georgia Southern had opened with a 4-under 284 before adding a 6-under 282 in the second round.

   Another Conference USA representative, Alabama Birmingham, was another three shots behind Georgia Southern in fifth place with a 21-under 843 total. The Blazers, who qualified for the NCAA Championship as a seven seed out of the Noblesville Regional last spring, added a 283 to their opening-round 285 before closing with a rush, matching East Tennessee State’s final round of 13-under 275.

   Penn State, playing out of the Big Ten, opened with a 3-over 291, but, behind Meyers’ 66, fired a 12-under 276 in Monday’s second round before closing with an 8-under 280 to finish in eighth place with a 17-under 847 total.

   Villanova, coming off a fifth-place finish in its Wildcat Fall Invitational at Radnor Valley Country Club last month, opened with a solid 2-over 290 before struggling in the final two rounds with a 308 in Monday’s second round and a final-round 304 for a 38-over 902 total. It is a big step up the competitive ladder when the Big East representative shows up at something like the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate, but Villanova head coach Jim Wilkes likes to challenge his players by teeing it up in events like this.

   East Tennessee State was led by Remi Chartier, a redshirt sophomore from Canada who finished in a tie for third place with an 11-under 205 total. Chartier had grabbed the lead heading into the final round after adding a 6-under 66 to his opening-round 68, but backed off a little in the final round with a 1-under 71.

   Backing up Chartier for the Bucs was Mats Ege, a redshirt freshman from Norway who finished in a tie for seventh place with a 9-under 207 total. After opening with a 70, Ege added a 69 before closing with a 4-under 68.

   Archie Davies, a redshirt sophomore from England, gave the Bucs a third player inside the top 10 as he added a pair of 3-under 69s to his opening-round 70 to finish among the group tied for ninth place with an 8-under 208 total. It was Davies who really shook things up in the Cle Elum Regional last spring with his 8-under 63 in the second round at the Suncadia Resort’s Tumble Creek Course on his way to a tie for fourth place in the individual chase.

   Jack Tickle, a freshman from Bristol, Tenn., struggled to a 75 in the opening round, but added a 1-under 71 in Monday’s second round before closing with a solid 3-under 69 to finish in a tie for 38^th place with a 1-under 215 total. Rounding out the East Tennessee State lineup was Aigot Kleen, a freshman from Sweden who opened with a 3-under 69 and struggled to a 76 in the second round before matching par in the final round with a 72 to finish in the group tied for 62^nd place with a 4-over 220 total.

   Oh yeah, the Buccaneers have some depth, too. Ben Carberry, a sophomore from Sweden, competed as an individual and finished in a tie for 13^th place with a 7-under 209 total. Carberry opened with a 3-under 69, backed off with a 1-over 73 in Monday’s second round and closed with a sparkling 5-under 67.

   East Tennessee State also got a solid showing from senior Campbell Wolf, the 2016 PIAA Class AAA runnerup as a senior at Cumberland Valley. Wolf, who started his college career at DePaul, got off to a good start with a 2-under 70 in the opening round and a 71 in Monday’s second round. Wolf struggled a little in the final round with a 79 that left him in the group tied for 62^nd place with a 4-over 220 total.

   Georgia Southern’s Carr added a 69 to his opening-round 68, but trailed East Tennessee State’s Chartier by three shots entering Tuesday’s final round. Carr, however, closed with a 6-under 66 for a 13-under 203 total that left him a shot ahead of Penn State’s Meyers and earned him his third career college tournament victory.

   Joining Chartier in the tie for third place at 11-under was Charlotte’s Matt Sharpstene, a senior from Asheville, N.C. who made a run to the semifinals of the 2020 U.S. Amateur at the Bandon Dunes Resort in Oregon. Sharpstene carded back-to-back 70s in the first two rounds before closing with a sizzling 7-under 65.

   UAB’s Nick Robillard, a redshirt senior from Birmingham, Ala. and Furman’s Walker Crosby, a junior from Memphis, Tenn., finished in a tie for fifth place, each landing on 10-under 206. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Robillard ripped off back-to-back 5-under 67s. Crosby was in the hunt for the individual title after registering back-to-back 4-under 68s in the first two rounds before closi9ng with a 70.

   Joining East Tennessee State’s Ege in the tie for seventh place at 9-under was Louisville’s Jim Zuska, a senior from the Czech Republic who was just two shots out of the lead after posting a pair of 4-under 68s before closing with a 71.

   In addition to Meyers and Sheehan, Penn State got a strong showing from graduate student Lou Olsakovsky, an Upper St. Clair product who was rock solid with three straight 2-under 70s that left him in the group tied for 15^th place at 6-under 210. Olsakovsky has improved every year he’s been in the Penn State program, which might be one reason he decided to return for the fifth year the NCAA granted to players who lost the spring of 2020 to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

   Morgan Lofland, the Central League’s top player during his scholastic career at Conestoga, earned a spot in the Penn State starting lineup as a freshman this season and is still there. Lofland, who closed out his junior career with a victory in the Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship at Hershey Country Club’s East Course in the summer, struggled to a 77 in the opening round, but matched par in Monday’s second round with a 72 and closed with a 2-under 70 that left in among the group tied for 55^th place with a 3-over 219 total.

   Rounding out the starting lineup for Penn State was James McHugh, a graduate student from Rye, N.Y. who matched par in the second round with a 72 after opening with a 77 and finished up with a 78 to end up in a tie for 84^th place at 11-over 227.

   Jake Griffin, a freshman from Kensington, Md., competed as an individual for Penn State and landed in the group with his classmate Lofland in a tie for 55^th place at 3-over 219. Griffin matched par in the opening round with a 72 and added a 76 in Monday’s second round before closing with a 1-under 71.

   Leading the way for Villanova was Peter Weaver, a sophomore from Frontenac, Mo. who finished among the group tied for 62^nd place at 4-over 220. Picking up where he left off in the Wildcat Fall Invitational, Weaver opened with a 4-under 68 at the Blackthorn Club. He struggled to an 80 in Monday’s second round before matching par with a 72 in Tuesday’s final round.

   Weaver led Villanova to a fifth-place finish in the Wildcat Fall Invitational as he finished in a tie for 13^th place in the individual standings with a 7-over 217 total.

   Matthew Copeland, a graduate student from Maryville, Tenn., backed up Weaver as he landed in the group tied for 79^th place at 225. After struggling to an 81 in the opening round, Copeland matched par in each of the final two rounds with a pair of 72s.

   Senior Matt Davis, who starred scholastically at Malvern Prep, and Luke Alexander, a junior from Rochester, Minn., finished in a tie for 90^th place, each finishing up with a 234 total. Davis, a product of the junior program at Aronimink Golf Club, opened with a solid 1-over 73, but struggled to rounds of 81 and 80 in the final two rounds, respectively. After opening with a 76, Alexander added a 78 in Monday’s second round before closing with an 80.

   Rounding out the Villanova lineup was Noah Peck, a senior from Hunt Valley, Md. who finished alone in 92^nd place with a 236 total. Peck opened with a solid 1-over 73, added a 78 in Monday’s second round and closed with an 85.

   Davis, playing on Villanova’s B team, which finished in ninth place, and Copeland finished in a tie for 16^th place in the Wildcat Fall Invitational, each landing on 9-over 219 over the par-70 Radnor Valley layout. Peck and Alexander, who joined Davis on Villanova’s B team, finished in a tie for 18^th place in the Wildcat Fall Invitational, each posting a 12-over 222 total.

   Another interesting name popped up at the top of the lineup for Maryland, which finished in 12^th place in the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate, and that was Chris Tanabe, the 2016 PIAA Class AA champion as a senior at Quaker Valley. So impressive in winning the Pennsylvania Amateur in 2019 at Aronimink, Tanabe is taking his fifth year of eligibility with the Terrapins after being a fixture in the Bucknell lineup for four years.

   Tanabe matched par in the final round at the Blackthorn Club with a 72 after carding back-to-back 2-under 70s in the first two rounds as he landed among the group tied for 24^th place with a 4-under 212 total.