The Fairfield University men’s and women’s golf teams took to the green at Disney’s par 72, 6,891 yard Magnolia Golf Course in Lake Buena Vista, Florida for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship tournament this weekend from April 18-20.
The women’s team placed seventh overall, while the University of Albany left as champions, with all five of their golfers among the top 14 of the weekend. Madison Banas ‘20 played an outstanding 79 (+7) in her opening-round, which contributed to her comfortable 16th place title. This round was the best by a Stag, and set the pace for her teammates.
Sophomore Alexa Brown placed second of the five Stags in contention and ranked 29th overall while Arianna Palmeri ‘20 took home 32nd, Taylor Rogers ‘20 33rd and Riley Sullivan ’22 35th.
They finished 18 holes of action in eighth place after the first day, and play was suspended on the second day of the tournament on account of rain. Fairfield’s play edged them ahead of Monmouth University and La Salle University and cemented them in seventh place in the MAAC. The top-ten finish concluded a successful season, lead by juniors among a senior-less roster.
The first day of competition was promising for the men’s team when three stags, namely Kellen Jordan ‘19, James Tyer ‘22 and Kevin Duncan ‘19, were ranked among the individual top 20 players of the 45-man golfer pool.
The men slotted seventh place, just two strokes behind Monmouth. Jordan posted a 76 (+4), Tyer and Duncan carded an identical 77 (+5), while Finn McGinnis ‘21 and Thomas Urciuoli ’19 each registered a 78 (+6).
Iona lead Round 1 with a 289 (+1) and kept their number one placement to finish off the championship, a mere five strokes ahead of Saint Peter’s University.
Urciuoli finished off his collegiate career, placing 13th overall. He golfed a memorable second-round, 74 (+2), the best round for his team. The senior helped carry his team to a sixth-place overall finish. Tyer and Duncan both shot 77-78-77 rounds, sharing 23rd place at the end of the trip. McGinnis’ performance put him in 29th place and Jordan found his way into 36th place.
The trip shows promise for the future of the organization, and highlights the true talent that Fairfield golf is fostering on the course.
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