When you think about Fairfield athletics, Men’s and Women’s Golf may not be the first thing that comes to mind.
Everyone knows we have a golf team, but without a golf course on campus the teams remain somewhat invisible to the average Fairfield student.
Recently however the golf teams have had some impressive successes that should not be overlooked.
This past week the Women’s Golf team dominated the Hofstra Invitational at the Great Rock Golf Course in Wading River, NY.
The Stags shot better than Hofstra University, Wagner College, Niagara University and Saint Francis College.
The invitational, the team’s second to last competition of the season, was a solid win for the Stags. The team took first place shooting a 673 shot total, beating out second place Hofstra by 25 strokes.
The Stags were lead by Christina DeStefano ’11 who captured first overall in the tournament with a two round total of 159.
Fairfield also took second thanks to fellow Kristen MacDonald ’11 who shot only one stroke behind DeStefano.
The Stags victory was also fueled by Claire Rothschild ’11 and Annie Sperandio ’11 who finished 9th and 10th respectively shooting impressive scores of 176 and 180.
Looking to the future of Fairfield Golf, the only non-senior Stag at the tournament, Elly Lemons ’13 finished a solid 12th shooting 183, beating out sixteen other competitors from contending teams.
The Fairfield Women’s Golf Team concluded their Fall Season at the University of Richmond Invitational this past Monday and Tuesday.
The success of the team is no doubt a direct result of solid coaching from head coach, Len Roberto.
Roberto has been the coach of Fairfield Men’s Golf for the past 12 seasons and also took over Women’s Golf in the 2004-2005 season.
He has twice been named the Coach of the Year in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), being voted for the honor by his coaching peers in 2004 and 2008.
Recently, Roberto’s successes have not only been noticed by the MAAC, but on a larger scale by the New England Intercollegiate Golf Association (NEIGA).
According to the Fairfield Athletics website, Roberto was selected for this year’s Gordon McCullough Award.
Gordon McCullough served as the Executive Director of the NEIGA and was a successful golf coach at the University of Hartford until his untimely death in 1990.
The award marks the first for Roberto, “The Gordon McCullough Award is one of the most prestigious awards in the New England golf area. It has been presented in the past to quite a few hall of fame golf coaches, so I feel really honored and privileged to be this year’s recipient of the Gordon McCullough Award.”
This award has extensive criteria, all of which were met by Roberto. These criteria include coaching for a minimum of 10 years, as well as making an overall contribution to New England golf while maintaining a positive relationship with players, including dress, behavior and rapport.
Candidates must also be knowledgeable of USGA, NCAA, and NEIGA rules and regulations and contribute to the community on behalf of collegiate golf.
Sophomore golfer, Brendan Carr commented on the award with great respect for his coach. “Coach Roberto is a great coach and great guy, he definitely deserved this award.” Carr went on to say that he enjoys playing for him and that his coach is a “hard worker who is willing to help.”
Roberto is a member of the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), as well as currently serving as the president of the executive board of NEIGA, where he served as Vice President.
According to Roberto’s bio on the Fairfield website, success in the classroom also continues to be at the forefront of the Stags golf program. Fairfield had five student-athletes selected to the 2009 MAAC All-Academic Team, the most of any program in the league.
In Roberto’s four seasons at the helm of both programs the Stags have had 18 student-athletes selected to the league’s All-Academic Team, with three additions from the women’s team this past year
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