Methodist, Hanna win Dixie Conference titles

By STEVE WILLIAMS

Methodist is back in familiar territory in the Dixie Conference.

The Monarchs won their 21st Dixie title April 19, turning back defending champ Greensboro College by seven shots.

In the 36-hole event at Northgreen in Rocky Mount, N.C., the Monarchs shot 296-280 to finish even par. Greensboro also posted a 280 the second day but couldn’t recover from a first-round 303. Averett, which shared the first-round lead Methodist, settled for third in the eight-team event after posting a second-round 299.

Methodist, which had won nine straight Dixie titles until Greensboro snapped the string a year ago, also had the individual champion.

Greg Hanna, a senior from Maine, edged Greensboro freshman Ryan Wilson in a sudden death playoff. Hanna, who shot 73-68, was caught by Wilson, who recovered from an opening 77 to fire a 64 in the second round. Hanna won the playoff with an eagle on the first extra hole.

Methodist also got key contributions from Adam Horton, who took third at 145 (74-71); Rich Bamber, tied for fourth at 146 (76-70), Mike Townsend (tied for seventh at 147 (73-74) and James Stewart (tied for seventh at 147 (76-71).

Methodist, ranked second in the Division III national rankings behind Wisconsin-Eau Claire, will probably see Greensboro and Averett again at the NCAA championships May 12-15 at Dornach Golf Club in Delaware, Ohio.

Greensboro is ranked fifth and Averett is sixth in the latest Precept Coaches’ Poll.

DIVISION III NOTES: Methodist won he Emory Spring Invitational April 14-15 in Atlanta by 16 shots over Oglethorpe, shooting 293-291. Junior James Stewart was the individual winner by four shots, firing 69-72.

Methodist also tied for first in the Golden Isles Invitational March 21-23 with Averett, both shooting 871 in the 54-hole event. Toni Karjalainen of Averett was run-away winner in the individual race, shooting 66-72-70 to finish eight under par. Stewart of Methodist was second at 216 (72-74-70).

UNC-W loses in playoff

Old Dominion defeated UNC-Wilmington in a sudden death playoff to capture the Colonial Athletic Association men's championship April 22 at Independence Golf Club in Richmond.

A pair of dramatic putts by individual champion Geoff Harris helped propel the Monarchs to a one-hole sudden death playoff against second round leader UNC Wilmington to capture the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA regionals.

Playing in the last group of the day, Harris rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation to give the Monarchs a single day team score of nine-under par (279) and erase a five-shot deficit to the Seahawks.

Freshman Nick Kenney helped set the tone in the 10-man playoff with a birdie on the first extra hole while two teammates notched pars. Playing as a pair of fivesomes where the best four scores against par were scored for each team, the ODU trio was paired with UNCW sophomores Marc Andre Roy and Brian Joyce who both recorded pars. As the second fivesome reached the green, UNCW’s Tony Dibitetto barely missed a birdie chip from the edge of a greenside bunker. UNCW’s Derek Brown and Adam Gee each had lengthy birdie attempts but narrowly missed, setting the stage for Harris who rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt from the front fringe to ice the victory.

Harris set a CAA tournament scoring mark with a three-day total of 13-under par (70-66-67 – 203), helping the Monarchs to a team total of 866 (299-288-279). The Seahawks had a scorecard of 291-291-284.

UNCW, which had won a sudden death playoff at the Wofford Invitational on April 12, placed all five players in the top 10 as DiBitetto, Joyce and Roy tied for fourth at even par (216). Brown and Gee each finished at four-over par and tied for ninth at 220. The Seahawks’ lineup posted a score no higher than 75 for the entire tournament.

UNC-Wilmington got ready for the Colonial Athletic Association battle by winning a pair of tournaments.

The Seahawks won the Bradford Creek Intercollegiate March 28-29 by one shot over Coastal Carolina, shooting 881 (286-302-293).

East Carolina was third at 894 and Elon fourth in the 18-team field.

ECU’s Jonathan Hill got past UNC-W’s DiBitetto and Coastal Carolina’s Dale Ketola in a four-hole playoff to capture his second tourney title of the season.

The Seahawks also claimed the Wofford Invitational April 11-12, edging Maryland in a playoff after both shot 580.

DiBitetto (71-72) tied for second, Brown (73-71) tied for fourth and Joyce (73-71) placed sixth to lead UNCW. UNC-Wilmington is likely to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA regionals.

Seahawk women earn bid

UNC-Wilmington scored a 33-shot victory in the Big South Women’s Golf Championship, contested at Sea Trail Resort.

With a three-round total of 935, the Seahawks earned their second straight berth to the NCAA Women’s Golf Regional, this one under first-year coach Cindy Ho.

Coastal Carolina placed second at 968, while Charleston Southern finished third at 975.

Yunuen Sanchez of UNCW captured medalist honors with a three-round total of 221. UNCW freshman Audrey Gale tied for third at 237.

Becky Berzonski (fifth), Michelle Jarman (tied for eighth) and Amelie Farrah (tied for 10th) gave the UNC-W five of the top 10 players.

Big South men

Charleston Southern captured Big South Men's Golf Championship at Sea Trail Resort April 18-20 and claimed a berth to the 2003 NCAA Men's Golf Regional.

Trailing by three shots heading into the day, CSU shot a final-round low 295 and finished at 887. Defending champion Coastal Carolina was second at 891, with Elon, the leader after the first and second rounds, finishing third at 892 (293-296-303).

Paul Reed of Charleston Southern shot 72-71-74 -- 217 and won the individual title by five shots.

ECU won 3rd, men 8th

East Carolina’s Margaret Mitchell, a junior from Raleigh, and Adrienne Millican, a sophomore from Fuquay-Varina, tied for eighth in the Conference USA Golf Championships April 21-23 at Lake Jovita Country Club in Dade City, Fla.

Mitchell shot 77-73-82 and Millican posted 77-76-79. Their 232 totals were eight shots off the pace of individual champ D’Rae Ward of TCU.

East Carolina placed third in the nine-team event, 21 shots pack of South Florida, which shot 912 (307-303-302). TCU was second and 913 (304-306-303) and ECU was third at 933 (308-308-317).

In the Conference USA men’s event, East Carolina struggled to a tie for eighth among 14 schools

TCU won the team title with 862 (288-289-285). The Pirates checked in at 892 (297-297-298).

Jason Harris and Jonathan Hill were the top individuals for ECU, sharing 13th place at 219, 10 shots off the four-under-par pace of freshman Russell Killough of Charlotte. Killough shot 68-70-71 to win by three shots while Harris shot 73-72-74 and Hill 74-72-73.