Fantinelli leads the way as Princeton captures team crown in its Princeton Invitational at Springdale

 

   Princeton will be taking a ton of momentum into the defense of its Ivy League Championship in less than two weeks at Wachtung Valley Golf Club in Wachtung, N.J.

   The host Tigers, behind reigning Ivy League individual champion Riccardo Fantinelli, a sophomore from Italy, came on strong in Sunday’s final round with the best team round of the weekend to rally past Northeast Conference representative Howard and capture the title in the Princeton Invitational by 12 shots at Springdale Golf Club in Princeton, N.J.

   Fantinelli closed with a sizzling 6-under-par 65 over the 6,444-yard, par-71 Springdale layout to get a share of medalist honors with the Howard pair of Everett Whiten Jr., a graduate student from Chesapeake, Va., and Gregory Odom Jr., a graduate student from Memphis, Tenn., all three landing on 6-under 207.

   Fantinelli helped the Tigers close with a 9-under 275 that gave them a 9-under 843 total.

   It was basically the last weekend of winter here in the Northeast. The 14-team field, which included several of Princeton’s Ivy League rivals and half of Philadelphia’s City 6 teams, played a double round Friday in chilly temperatures and brisk, gusty winds.

   It was a little calmer and got a little warmer as Saturday’s final round played out, but it was a while before temperatures climbed out of the low 40s.

   Princeton, coming off a victory in the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate at the Golden Horseshoe Golf Course in Williamsburg, Va. last month, opened with a 3-over 287 in the tough conditions and added a 3-under 281 in Friday afternoon’s second round that left it two shots behind Howard going into Saturday’s final round.

   Howard opened with a 1-over 285 and matched Princeton’s 3-under 281 in Friday afternoon’s second round to take a two-shot edge into Saturday’s final round. The Bison couldn’t keep up with Princeton’s final-round surge, but they put together a solid 5-over 289, which enabled them to hold on to second place with a 3-over 855 total.

   After opening with a 1-over 72, Fantinelli carded a solid 1-under 70 in Friday afternoon’s second round that left him six shots behind Howard’s Odom, who had opened with a sparkling 5-under 66 before adding a 1-under 70 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Fantinelli, who captured the Ivy’s individual crown a year ago at The Stanwich Club in Greenwich, Conn., erupted in the final round at Springdale to get a share of medalist honors at 6-under. Fantanelli went 7-under in a seven-hole stretch on the incoming nine at Springdale as he recorded birdies at the 11^th, 12^th, 14^th, 15^th, and 16^th holes and an eagle at the par-5 17^th to tour the back nine in 29.

   Odom matched par in the final round with a 71 to get his piece of the Princeton Invitational’s individual championship.

   Whiten was right there with his teammate the whole weekend as he opened with a solid 1-under 70 and was only two shots behind Odom after posting a 3-under 68 in Friday afternoon’s second round. Whiten again got it in in red figures in Saturday’s final round with a 2-under 69 to earn him his share of the individual crown.

   Seton Hall, a Big East representative, closed with a solid 4-over 288 to finish two shots behind Howard in third place with a 5-over 857 total. The Pirates had opened with a 6-over 290 and surged into contention with a 5-under 279 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Four of Princeton’s Ivy League rivals lined up in the next four spots in the team standings beginning with Columbia, which finished 11 shots behind Seton Hall in fourth place with a 16-over 868 total. The Lions added a 3-over 287 in Friday afternoon’s second round to their opening round of 1-over 285 before struggling a little in a final-round 296.

   Yale ended up three shots behind Columbia in fifth place with a 19-over 871 total as the Bulldogs added a solid 1-over 285 in Friday afternoon’s second round to their opening-round 294 before closing with a 9-over 292.

   Penn was a shot behind Yale in sixth place with a 20-over 872 total as the Quakers started slowly with an opening-round 298, but bounced back with a 1-over 285 in Friday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 5-over 289.

   Harvard was four shots behind Penn in seventh place with a 24-over 876 total as the Crimson rebounded from an opening-round 305 with a solid 1-over 285 in Friday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 2-over 286.

   Temple, out of the American Athletic Conference, finished six shots behind Harvard in eighth place with a 30-over 882 total as the Owls bounced back from an opening-round 302 with a solid 2-over 286 in Friday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 294.

   Saint Joseph’s, an Atlantic 10 entry and the last of the trio of City 6 teams in the field, finished in a tie for ninth place in the 14-team field with Georgetown, another Big East representative, both landing three shots behind Temple at 33-over 885.

   St. Joe’s finished strong with a solid 1-over 285 in the final round after the Hawks had struggled in the opening round with a 301 and added a 299 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   The Hoyas added a 297 in Friday afternoon’s second round to their opening-round 296 before finishing up with their best round of the tournament, a 9-over 292.

   Backing up Fantanelli for Princeton was Jackson Fretty, a sophomore from Cos Cob, Conn. who finished just a shot behind the three co-medalists in a tie for fourth place with a 5-under 208 total. After opening with a 1-over 73, Fetty tallied a sparkling 5-under 66 in Friday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 2-under 69.

   William Huang, a junior from Exeter, N.H., gave Princeton a third top-10 finisher as he was part of a trio of players tied for ninth place at 1-over 214.

   Huang, coming off an individual title in the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate, got off to a strong start at Springdale with a 4-under 67 and added a 5-over 76 in Friday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 3-over 74.

   Charlie Palmer, a freshman from Paradise Valley, Ariz., contributed an important even-par 71 to Princeton’s final-round surge as he finished among the group tied for 22^nd place with a 7-over 220 total. Palmer had opened with a 4-over 75 before adding a 74 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Rounding out the Princeton lineup was Tommy Frist, a freshman from Nashville, Tenn. who contributed his best round of the tournament, a 1-under 70, to the Tigers’ strong closing kick as he finished in the group tied for 26^th place with an 8-over 221 total. Frist struggled in the tough conditions of the opening round with a 79 before bouncing back with a counting 1-over 72 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Joining Princeton’s Fretty in tie for fourth place at 5-under, a shot behind the three co-medalists, was Seton Hall’s Wenliang Xie, a graduate student from China who finished strong with a 4-under 67 in the final round. Xie had matched par in the opening round with a 71 before adding a 1-under 70 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Harvard’s Brian Ma, a senior from Milpitas, Calif., finished alone in sixth place in defense of the individual crown he claimed a year ago in the Princeton Invitational with a 3-under 210 total.

   Ma was just a shot out of the lead going into the final round after he added a 4-under 67 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 70. Ma closed with a 1-over 73.

   Columbia’s D.J. Francey, a senior from Weston, Fla., finished two shots behind Ma in seventh place with a 1-under 212 total as he matched par in Friday afternoon’s second round after opening with a 1-over 72 and finished up with a solid 2-under 69.

   Yale’s Will Lodge, a sophomore from Darien, Conn., finished a shot behind Francey in eighth place at even-par 213 as he got off to a strong start with a 4-under 67 in the opening round’s wind and cold, added a 1-over 72 in Friday afternoon’s second round and closed with a 74.

   Another Yalie from Darien, Conn., junior Ben Carpenter, joined Princeton’s Huang and Temple’s Aidan Emmerich, a sophomore from Swampscott, Mass., in the trio tied for ninth place at 1-over.

   Carpenter sandwiched a 1-under 70 in Friday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 1-over 72s. In leading the way for the Owls, Emmerich opened with a solid 1-under 70 and added a 2-over 73 in Friday afternoon’s second round before matching par with a 71 in the final round.

   Penn was led by Max Fonseca, a freshman from Miami, Fla. who finished a shot behind the trio tied for ninth place as he was alone in 12^th with a 2-over 215 total. After opening with a 2-over 73, Fonseca matched par in each of the last two rounds with a pair of 71s.

   Backing up Fonseca for the Quakers was Hayden Adams, a freshman from Lexington, Ky. who finished alone in 19^th place at 5-over 218. After struggling a little in the opening round with a 5-over 76, Adams carded a solid 1-under 70 in Friday afternoon’s second round before finishing up with a 1-over 72.

   George Roessler, a junior from North Palm Beach, Fla., finished among the group tied for 26^th place for Penn at 8-over 221 as he matched par with a 71 in Friday afternoon’s second round after opening with a 1-over 72 and then struggled to a 78 in Saturday’s final round.

   Ben Scott, a junior from Manhattan Beach, Calif., finished among a trio of players tied for 39^th place at 224 for the Quakers as he bounced back from an opening-round 77 with a 2-over 73 in Friday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 3-over 74.

   Rounding out the Penn lineup was Jamin Jung, a senior from Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. who finished in the group tied for 44^th place with a 227 total. Jung struggled in Friday’s double round, adding a 77 in the afternoon to his opening-round 78 before regrouping with a final round of 1-over 72.

   Backing up Emmerich for Temple were Graham Chase, a senior from Charlotte, N.C., and Ethan Whitney, a junior from Westminster, Mass, as they both landed in the group tied for 32^nd place at 9-over 222.

   After struggling to a 77 in the opening round, Chase had the low Owl round of the tournament, a sparkling 5-under 66 in Friday afternoon’s second round, before closing with a 79. Whitney added a 1-over 72 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 76 and finished up with a 3-over 74.

   Junior Joey Morganti, a Havertown resident who starred scholastically at St. Joseph’s Prep, finished among the group tied for 44^th place with a 227 total. Morganti struggled in the opening round with an 80 and added a 4-over 75 in Friday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 1-over 72.

   Rounding out the Temple lineup was Michael Walsh, a junior from Shelburne, Vt. who finished in the group tied for 58^th place with a 233 total. After opening with a 79, Walsh registered back-to-back 6-over 77s.

   For the second straight tournament, Saint Joseph’s was led by sophomore Christian Matt, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Wissahickon who finished in the group tied for 20^th place with a 6-over 219 total.

   Coming off a runnerup finish in the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate, Matt finished up with a 2-under 69 to climb into the top 20. Matt had opened with a 3-over 74 and added a 76 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Junior Thomas Larkin, a Cardinal O’Hara product, continued playing some solid golf this spring for the Hawks as he finished in the group tied for 26^th place with an 8-over 221 total. Larkin struggled in the opening round’s tough conditions with a 78, but added a 1-over 72 in Friday afternoon’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 71.

   Sophomore Matt Zerfass, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Emmaus, finished in a tie for 37^th place with a 223 total for St. Joe’s as he added a 5-over 76 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 75 before closing with a 1-over 72.

   Freshman Noah Moelter, who finished in a tie for sixth place in the 2022 PIAA Class AAA Championship at Penn State as senior at Central Bucks South, finished in a tie for 50^th place for the Hawks with a 230 total. Moelter added a 4-over 75 to his opening-round 74, but struggled in the final round with an 81.

   Freshman Kevin Lafond, who starred at Catholic League power La Salle, rounded out the Saint Joseph’s lineup as he finished among the group tied for 56^th place with a 232 total. Lafond, who, like Moelter, was a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior in 2022, added a 79 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 80 before regrouping in the final round with a 2-over 73.

   Rider sophomore Ben Ortwein, a three-time PIAA Class AA qualifier at Notre Dame Green Pond, finished in the group tied for 32^nd place for the Broncs with a 9-over 222 total. Ortwein matched par in the final round with a solid 71. He had opened with a 4-over 75 and added a 76 in Friday afternoon’s second round.

   Rider, a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference representative, finished 12^th in the team standings with a 52-over 904 total.

   Cornell, another Ivy League entry, finished last of the 14 teams in the field with an 85-over 937 total, but Strath Haven’s Debusschere brothers were both in the lineup for the Big Red.

   Tyler Debusschere, a freshman, finished among a trio of players tied for 52^nd place with a 231 total as he added a 6-over 77 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 76 before closing with a 78.

   Jackson Debusschere, a junior, finished in 72^nd place with a 247 total as he was never able to solve the Springdale layout, adding an 82 in Friday afternoon’s second round to his opening-round 86 before closing with a 78.

   Jackson Debusschere was a junior and Tyler Debusschere a freshman on Strath Haven’s 2019 team that captured the first Central League and District One Class AAA crowns in the program’s history. Tyler Debusschere earned a trip to the PIAA Class AAA Championship as a senior in 2022.

   Also in the Cornell lineup was sophomore Weston Warden, a sophomore who was a scholastic standout at Shady Side Academy. Warden was a no-card for the opening round, but recorded a 5-over 76 in Friday afternoon’s second round and a 77 in Saturday’s final round.