Giantsopoulos, Nicholas lead the way as Drexel surges to runnerup finish in Dorado Beach Collegiate

    Drexel, closing strong with the best team round of the tournament, surged to a second-place finish in the Dorado Beach Collegiate, which wrapped up Tuesday at the Dorado Beach Resort & Club’s Sugarcane Course in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

   Angelo Giantsopoulos, a fifth-year player from Canada, and Drue Nicholas, a sophomore from Egg Harbor Township, N.J., each closed with a solid 4-under-par 68 over the 7,112-yard, par-72 Sugarcane Course, to finish in a tie for second place with a 13-under 203 total, a shot behind individual champion Nick Lyerly, a North Carolina Greensboro graduate student from Salisbury, N.C. and No. 53 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).

   The Dragons, No. 145 in the latest Golfstat rankings, got a bustout effort in Tuesday’s final round from Brockton English, a freshman from Shelby Township, Mich. who matched the low round of the day with a scintillating 6-under 66 that left him among the group tied for 50^th place with a 3-over 219 total.

   English birdied the hole he started on, the seventh, and then made an eagle on the par-5 ninth. After making a birdie at the 10^th hole, English rattled off nine straight pars before adding birdies at the second and sixth holes to finish at 6-under, a career best.

   It was a record-breaking day for head coach Ben Feld’s Drexel program as the final round of 15-under 273 was a program record and the Dragons also established a program record with their 25-under 839 total that left them four shots behind tournament host North Carolina Greensboro.

   North Carolina Greensboro, which plays out of the Southern Conference, got off to a strong start with a 13-under 275 in Sunday’s opening round that left the Spartans a shot behind Ball State. A 5-under 283 in Monday’s second round by No. 76 UNCG was matched by Ball State, so the Spartans still trailed by a shot going into Tuesday’s final round.

   UNCG, however, got a 4-under 68 from Lyerly on his way to the individual title as he led the Spartans to a final round of 11-under 277 that gave them a 29-under 835 total.

   Drexel had posted back-to-back 5-under 283s in the first two rounds before its final-round surge left it with a 25-under total that was four shots behind UNCG.

   Drexel was the runnerup in the Colonial Athletic Association Championship last spring at the Dawtaw Island Club’s Colton Dike Course on Helena Island, S.C. with Giantsopoulos finishing in a tie for second place and Jeffrey Cunningham, a senior from West Palm Beach, Fla., taking fifth.

   Giantsopoulos was the co-medalist and Nicholas capped a strong start to his freshman season by finishing in a tie for third place as they led Drexel to the team title in the City 6 Championship at Llanerch Country Club to finish off the fall portion of the wraparound 2021-2022 season.

   Drexel opened the spring portion of the season a couple of weeks ago by finishing in sixth place in the Advance Golf Partners Collegiate at the Hammock Beach Resort’s Ocean Course in Palm City, Fla. The Dragons were led by Nicholas, who closed with a sparkling 5-under 67 to finish in a tie for sixth place in the individual standings.

   Ball State, out of the Mid-American Conference, fell back a little in the final round, but still carded a solid 3-under 285 to finish in third place, three shots behind Drexel with a 22-under 842 total.

   Wofford, another SoCon entry, got off to a fast start with a 12-under 276, fell back a little with a 2-under 286 in Monday’s second round and closed with a 5-under 283 to finish three shots behind Ball State in fourth place with a 19-under 845 total.

   One of Drexel’s CAA rivals, James Madison, was three shots behind Wofford in fifth place with a 16-under 848 total. The Dukes added a 286 in Monday’s second round to their opening round of 3-under 285 before surging in the final round with an 11-under 277.

   The Atlantic Coast Conference’s Virginia Tech, the highest-ranked team in the field at No. 44, matched par in the opening round with a 288 before posting a solid 10-under 278 in Monday’s second round and closed with a 2-under 286 to finish four shots behind James Madison in sixth place with a 12-under 852 total.

   Another CAA entry, Elon, took eighth place in the 13-team field with an 8-under 856 total, four shots behind Virginia Tech. The Phoenix matched par in each of the first two rounds with a pair of 288s before finishing up with an 8-under 280.

   Lyerly got off to a fast start with an opening round of 6-under 66. He added back-to-back 4-under 68s in the final two rounds to claim the individual title with a 14-under 202 total, holding off Drexel’s Giantsopolous and Nicholas by a shot. It was the third tournament victory of the wraparound 2021-’22 season for Lyerly and seventh of his career.

   Backing up Lyerly for the Spartans was Randall Hudson, a sophomore from New Bern, N.C. who was part of a five-player logjam tied for seventh place at 6-under 210. After opening with a solid 3-under 69, Hudson added a 71 in Monday’s second round before closing with a 2-under 70.

   Symon Balbin, a junior from Pinehurst, N.C., opened with a sparkling 5-under 67, added a 73 in Monday’s second round and finished up with a 1-under 71 to join the group tied for 12^th place with a 5-under 211.

   Noah Connor, a junior from Reidsville, N.C., contributed a solid 4-under 68 in the final round that helped UNCG hold off Drexel’s late run and left him among the group tied for 17^th place with a 4-under 212 total. Connor had added a 1-under 71 to his opening-round 73 in Monday’s second round.

   Closing out the UNCG lineup was Jack Marcotte, a junior from Apex, N.C. who finished in the group tied for 60^th place at 6-over 222. Marcotte sandwiched a 76 in Monday’s second round with a pair of 1-over 73s.

   Giantsopoulos and Nicholas, a St. Augustine Prep product, were right on Lyerly’s heels the whole tournament. Giantsopoulos was just a shot behind Lyerly after opening with a 5-under 67 and added back-to-back 68s to join his teammate Nicholas in a tie for second place at 13-under 203, a shot behind Lyerly.

   Nicholas, who registered a four-shot victory in last fall’s ODU/OBX Intercollegiate at Kilmaric Golf Club in Powells Point, N.C., matched the opening-round 66 posted by Lyerly, added a 69 in Monday’s second round and closed with a 4-under 68 to share runnerup honors with Giantsopoulos at 13-under.

   James Madison’s Nacho Montero, a redshirt senior from Spain, finished alone in fourth place, four shots behind the Drexel duo with a 9-under 207 total. After getting to a fast start with a 5-under 67, Montero matched par in Monday’s second round with a 72 before closing with a 4-under 68.

   Elon’s Matt Doyle, a freshman from John’s Island, S.C., and Ball State’s Kash Bellar, a freshman from Peru, Ind., finished in a tie for fifth place, each landing two shots behind Montero at 7-under 209.

   Doyle added a 2-under 70 in Monday’s second round to his opening-round 73 before surging up the leaderboard with a sizzling 6-under 66 in the final round. After opening with a 3-under 69, Bellar added a 73 in Monday’s second round before also finishing strong with a 5-under 67.

   Among those joining UNCG’s Hudson in the group tied for seventh place at 6-under 210 was a pair of Bellar’s Ball State teammates, Colin Nasser, a freshman from Zionsville, Ind. who was competing as an individual, and Ali Kahn, a redshirt freshman from Columbus, Ohio.

   Nasser probably earned himself some consideration to make the starting lineup as he opened with a solid 3-under 69, added a 71 in Monday’s second round and closed with a 2-under 70. Kahn also got off to a fast start with a 4-under 68 and got it to 7-under with a 69 in Monday’s second round before cooling off in the final round with a 73.

   Rounding out the group at 6-under were Wofford’s Walker Jones, a senior from Sumter, S.C., and Virginia Tech’s Connor Johnson Jr., a senior from Richmond, Va.

   Jones added a 2-under 70 in Monday’s second round to his opening-round 71 before finishing strong with a 3-under 69. After opening with a 4-under 68, Johnson matched par in Monday’s second round with a 72 before closing with a 70.

   Cunningham backed up Drexel’s top two of Giantsopoulos and Nicholas as he finished among the group tied for 44^th place with a 2-over 218 total. After opening with a 75, Cunningham matched par in Monday’s second round with a 72 before finishing up with a 1-under 71.

   English had struggled in the opening round with a 79 and added a 2-over 74 in Monday’s second round before his sizzling final-round 66 lifted him into the group tied for 50^th place.

   Rounding out the Drexel lineup was Griffin Mitchell, a sophomore from New Albany, Ohio who finished alone in 72^nd place with a 10-over 226 total. Mitchell struggled to a 78 in Monday’s second round after opening with a 75, but finished up with a solid 1-over 73.

   James Madison got a solid showing from senior Neal Shipley, a member of Pittsburgh Central Catholic’s 2018 PIAA Class AAA championship team who finished among the group tied for 25^th place at 1-under 215. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Shipley added a 73 in Monday’s second round before closing with a 2-under 70.