Weaver, Pamer lead Villanova to team crown in Matthews Auto Collegiate Invitational

 

   Getting top-eight finishes from Peter Weaver, a senior from Frontenac, Mo., and Ryan Pamer, a sophomore from Hudson, Ohio, Villanova surged to the team title in the Matthews Auto Collegiate Invitational, hosted by Binghamton at The Links at Hiawatha Landing in Apalachian, N.Y.

   The Wildcats, representing the Big East Conference, entered Tuesday’s final round trailing defending champion Lehigh by four shots after opening with a solid 1-under-par 287 over the 7,104-yard, par-72 Hiawatha Landing layout.

   With Weaver carding a 3-under-par 69 and Pamer adding a 2-under 70 in the final round, Villanova closed with a 4-under 284 that gave it a 5-under 571 total and left the Wildcats two shots clear of host Binghamton and St. Bonaventure.

   Villanova had been without a team title in a tournament for four years when the Wildcats went back-to-back last spring, tasting victory in the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate at Williamsburg, Va. and as the host in the Wildcat Spring Invitational at LuLu Country Club. Weaver and Pamer played prominent roles in both of those victories.

   Weaver had opened with a 4-under 68 and his final-round 69 left him in a three-way tie for second place in the individual standings, two shots behind individual champion Devin Smith, a junior at Mount St. Mary’s who was a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior at Waynesboro in 2019.

   Devin Smith added a 5-under 67 in the second round to his opening-round 68 to capture the individual crown with a 9-under 135 total.

   Pamer’s 70 in the second round matched his opening round of 2-under 70 as he finished alone in eighth place with a 4-under 140 total.

   Binghamton and St. Bonaventure both made strong moves in the final round to share second place, each ending up two shots behind Villanova with a 3-under 573 total.

   The Bearcats, an America East Conference representative, closed with a 5-under 283 after opening with a 2-over 290.

   Binghamton was led by Brandon Conner, a sophomore from Cincinnati who got a share of second place along with Villanova’s Weaver at 7-under 137. Conner was the individual leader following an opening round of 5-under 67 before finishing up with a 2-under 70.

   St. Bonaventure, playing out of the Atlantic 10 Conference, had opened with a 5-over 293, but closed with the low team round of the tournament, an 8-under 280, to get its share of second place in the team standings.

   Lehigh, a Patriot League entry, had grabbed the lead with an opening round of 5-under 283. But the Mountain Hawks fell back a little with a 3-over 291 in the final round to finish in fourth place, three shots behind Binghamton and St. Bonaventure with a 2-under 574 total.

   Lehigh was led by graduate student David Hurly, a member of The Haverford School’s dominant 2018 Inter-Ac League championship team.

   Hurly, coming off an individual victory in the Temple Invitational at The 1912 Club, added a 2-under 70 in the final round to his opening round of 4-under 68 to finish in a tie for fifth place at 6-under 138 total.

   Monmouth, playing out of the Coastal Athletic Association, had trailed Lehigh by just a shot going into the final round after opening with a solid 4-under 284 before closing with a 3-over 291 to finish a shot behind the Mountain Hawks in fifth place with a 1-under 575 total.

   Leading the way for Monmouth was Ethan Lee, a sophomore from Jackson, N.J. who rounded out the trio tied for second place in the individual standings along with Villanova’s Weaver ad Binghamton’s Conner at 7-under. Lee opened with a solid 4-under 68 before adding a 69 in the final round.

   Villanova was joined in the field by two other City 6 teams, Saint Joseph’s and La Salle, both of which play out of the Atlantic 10.

   Saint Joseph’s added a 4-over 292 in the second round to its opening round of 6-over 294 as the Hawks finished 11 shots behind Monmouth in sixth place with a 10-over 586 total.

   La Salle shaved 10 shots off its opening-round 299 with a solid 1-over 289 in the final round as the Explorers shared seventh place in the 14-team field with Canisius, Laval and Mount St. Mary’s, all four teams landing on 12-over 588.

   Backing up Weaver and Pamer for Villanova was Jonathan Elkins, a senior from South Deerfield, Mass. who contributed a crucial 1-under 71 to the Wildcats’ second-round surge that enabled him to finish in the group tied for 26^th place with a 2-over 146 total. Elkins had opened with a 3-over 75.

   P.J. O’Rourke, a graduate student from Paramus, N.J., carded a pair of 2-over 74s, both of which were counters for Villanova, as he finished in the group tied for 37^th place with a 4-over 148 total. O’Rourke was a four-year standout at Fordham who transferred to the Main Line for his fifth season.

   Rounding out the Villanova lineup was Josh Lavely, a sophomore from Kewadin, Mich. who finished in the group tied for 65^th place with a 155 total. Lavely opened with a 3-over 75 before struggling to an 80 in the second round.

   Vimal Alokam, a junior from Ypsilanti, Mich., competed as an individual for the Wildcats and made a strong case for a spot in the starting lineup as he matched par in both rounds with a pair of 72s, his even-par 144 total leaving him in the group tied for 13^th place.

   Joining Lehigh’s Hurly in the tie for fifth place at 6-under 138 was St. Bonaventure’s Michael Bucko, a sophomore from Johnson City, N.Y., who matched the low individual round of the tournament, a 5-under 67, in the second round. Bucko had opened with a 1-under 71.

   Canisius’ Ryan Edholm, a junior from Tonawanda, N.Y., finished a shot behind Hurly and Bucko in seventh place with a 5-under 139 total as he added a 3-under 69 in the final round to his opening round of 2-under 70.

   Le Moyne’s Nick Bove, a graduate student from Syracuse, N.Y., finished a shot behind Villanova’s Pamer in ninth place with a 3-under 141 total. Bove added a 1-under 71 in the second round to his opening round of 2-under 70.

   La Salle got a top-10 finish from sophomore Kevin Lydon, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior at Central Bucks West in 2021, as he finished in a tie for 10^th place with Lehigh junior Aidan Oehrle, a member of Fox Chapel’s PIAA Class AAA championship team in 2019, each landing on 2-under 142.

   After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Lydon closed with a solid 2-under 70. Oehrle recorded a pair of 1-under 71s.

   Lehigh sophomore Aiden LeBlanc, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior at Emmaus in 2021, competed as an individual and finished a shot behind Lydon and LeBlanc’s fellow Mountain Hawk Oehrle in 12^th place with a 1-under 143 total. LeBlanc opened with a sparkling 3-under 69 before backing off a little with a 2-over 74 in the final round.

   The best result turned in by a Saint Joseph’s player didn’t count in the team standings for the Hawks as freshman Noah Moelter, who capped a standout scholastic career at Central Bucks South by ending up in a tie for sixth place in last fall’s PIAA Class AAA Championship, competed as an individual and finished in the group tied for 13^th place at even-par 144.

   Moelter added a 1-under 71 in the final round to his opening round of 1-over 73.

   Junior Thomas Larkin, who starred scholastically at Cardinal O’Hara, and sophomore Matt Zerfass, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Emmaus, led the way for St. Joe’s as they both finished among the group tied for 17^th place at 1-over 145.

   Larkin opened with a 1-under 71 before adding a 2-over 74 in the second round. After opening with a 3-over 75, Zerfass registered a solid 2-under 70 in the second round.

   Senior Kevin Smith, who led Strath Haven to the first District One Class AAA team crown in program history as a senior in 2019, and sophomore Christian Matt, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Wissahickon, finished in the group tied for 37^th place for the Hawks at 4-over 148.

   Smith opened with a solid 1-under 71 before struggling to a 77 in the second round. Matt had the opposite splits, struggling to a 77 in the opening round before finishing up with a 1-under 71.

   Rounding out the St. Joe’s lineup was Ryan Gorman, a senior from Greenville, S.C. who finished alone in 84^th place with a 162 total after adding a 78 in the second round to his opening-round 84.

   Backing up Lydon for La Salle was graduate student Nikita Romanov, a product of Delaware’s Mount Pleasant High who finished in the group tied for 30^th place with a 3-over 147. Romanov matched par in the second round with a 72 after opening with a 3-over 75.

   Gavin Dosch, a freshman from Draper, Utah, and Benjamin Battye, a sophomore from Torrance, Calif., both finished in the group tied for 52^nd place at 6-over 150 for the Explorers. Dosch added a 2-over 74 to his opening-round 76. Battye bounced back from an opening-round 77 with a 1-over 73 in the final round.

   Not sure who was competing as an individual and who was in the La Salle lineup, but the final two Explorers in the field were redshirt sophomore Matt Lafond, a product of Catholic League powerhouse La Salle, and graduate student Karsen Rush, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier in 2017 as a junior at Chambersburg.

   Lafond, the Catholic League champion as a senior in 2019, matched par in the opening round with a 72 before struggling in the second round with an 84 that left him in a tie for 67^th place with a 156 total.

   Rush opened with a 4-over 76 before closing with an 81 that left him in 74^th place with a 157 total.

   Mount St. Mary’s also got a strong showing from senior Ben Smith, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier in 2018 as a senior at West Perry who finished in the group tied for 17^th place with a 1-over 145 total.

   Ben Smith, who made a run to the semifinals of the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship at Huntingdon Valley Country Club in June, added a solid 1-under 71 to his opening-round 74.