Sept. 13, 2009

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• 2009 Navy Fall Golf Classic - Final Results

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- One day after Navy tied a tournament record by shooting a 5-under par 279, Northwestern blistered the field by scoring a 14-under par 270 in the final round to take the 2009 Navy Fall Classic title with a two-round mark of 16-under par 552. The host Midshipmen, who held a narrow 3-stroke lead over the Wildcats going into the final round, shot the next lowest score on Sunday (287, +3), but dropped to second in the final standings with a 2-under par 566.

Northwestern is the 13th different team to win the team title over the 16 years the tournament has been held in Annapolis. Meanwhile, it marks the 11th straight year a new team has been crowned the champion.

Anchoring the Wildcats' fast and furious come-from-behind win was sophomore Sam Chien who carded a 7-under 64 to earn the individual title boasting a 7-under 135 (71-64). While Chien picked up his first collegiate tournament title, his career-best round of 64 is tied for the third-best score in Northwestern golf history. He took the individual championship by two strokes over teammate David Lipsky (69-68). Additionally, Northwestern's Eric Chun and Jonathan Bowers finished among the field's top six.

Seton Hall leap-frogged Villanova by three strokes to take third with a 6-over par 574 (286-288), while the Wildcats finished fourth at 9-over par 577 (285-292) and Drexel rounded out the top five with a 16-over par 584 (291-293).

Navy, meanwhile, put together a fine season-opening finish, competing against some of the top teams not only in the region, but also the country. In fact, the Mids' 2-under par 566 marked the first time Navy has finished under par and combined with Northwestern's tournament-winning performance this weekend, it's only the fourth time a team has shot under par. Navy's previous best performance was in 2002 when the Mids shot a 9-over par 577.

Three Navy players finished among the top 10, including junior Ben Hayes (Carmichael, Calif.) who paced the field with a 4-under par 67 following the opening round. He paired it with a par 71 to place third in the tournament with a 4-under 138. He is the only Navy player not named Billy Hurley to card a 4-under in the program's tournament history.

Sophomore Tim Shield (Grosse Pointe Park, Md.) turned in just the second top 10 finish of his career by placing sixth with a two-round 1-under par 141 (69-72), while junior Josh Ziska (Camarillo, Calif.) was a stroke back in ninth with a par 142 (72-70)

Second-year standout Peter Reilly (Merrimack, N.H.), who was 10th after the opening round, stumbled on Sunday, carding a 5-over par 76 to place 24th with a two-day mark of 147 (+5). Senior Michael Harrigan (Moorestown, N.J.) rounded things out with a 9-over par 151 (77-74) to finish 51st.

"Northwestern played a very strong round of golf today," said Navy head coach and 2009 Co-Patriot League Coach of the Year Pat Owen. "For our players, it was a wonderful experience to compete head-to-head with such a strong team. Although we weren't able to get under par again today, we had a solid round and actually played stronger at the end than yesterday. I think our players will take a lot of positives out of this weekend."

In addition to the Navy Blue squad, the Mids also fielded two other teams, Navy Gold, who placed 12th with an 36-over par 604 (302-302), and the Navy White team, who finished 16th with a 71-over par 639 (323-316).

Sophomore Collier Jones (Little Rock, Ark.) and junior Steve 'Beau' Guidry (Durham, N.C.) guided the Navy gold team as the pair placed 36th with a 7-over par 149. Also contributing scores for the Navy Gold squad were Andrew Haines (Kirtland, Ohio) in 59th (78-75), John Moore (Winnetka, Ill.) in 65th (77-77) and Tyler Kuhn (Louisville, Ky.) in 78th (77-81).

Local products Rob Merkert (Severna Park, Md.) and Matthew Hardie (Arnold, Md.) continued to pace the Navy White squad through the final round, as the twosome placed 71st with a 14-over par 156. Rookie Pat Collins (Floral Park, N.Y.) finished 82nd (80-81), while Joshua Howell (New Bern, N.C.) placed 86th (90-79) and Keegan Merkert (Severna Park, Md.) rounded out the team in 90th (87-100).

Navy will spend the next 10 days preparing for its annual Star Match against Army. The traditional two-day Ryder Cup-style event will be jammed into one day featuring four 4-ball matches along with seven singles matches. The first team to reach six points is declared the winner. This year's battle for bragging rights will be held in Annapolis at the Naval Academy Golf Course on Saturday, Sept. 26.