St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
Morris Williams
Red Storm Battles Through Tough Conditions In Texas
3/16/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
March 16, 2012
AUSTIN, Texas -- The field and course at the 2012 Morris Williams Invitational have made the tournament one of the toughest in the nation, and Friday's first two rounds were no different as the Red Storm men's golf team shot 301 in both rounds on day one at University of Texas Golf Club.
"It's fun to get out here and play with some of the best teams in the nation, but there were some tough scoring conditions out here today," head coach Frank Darby said. "Playing in a field like this is like the Steve Lavin basketball approach; we schedule a lot of tough opponents to get ourselves ready to compete for the BIG EAST championship."
Senior Mark Costanza led the way for St. John's, shooting 70-74--144 in the opening 36 holes and is tied for 20th. Under tough conditions, Costanza was able to take advantage of his opportunities and knock in nine birdies, tied for third most in the field.
"I was striking the ball really well out there, I think I hit 16 or 17 greens (in regulation) in the first round," Costanza said. "I stumbled a little bit in that second round; I had a chance to go 70-70, but went four-over in the last three holes. Other than those three holes, I had a pretty good day out there."
Sophomore Ryan McCormick shot a 76 in the first round, then came back with a 73 to lead the team in the second round for a two-round total of 149. Junior Pat Wilson, who was recently named the BIG EAST Player of the Week, shot 76-78--153 on day one. Freshman Dylan Crowley shot 79-76--175 and junior Jeremy Quinn shot 79-80--159 to round out the scoring for St. John's.
No. 1 Texas is leading the field, comprised of seven teams ranked in the top-50 of the Sagarin/Golfweek rankings, at 561(-7). Geoff Shaw of Texas A&M is leading the individual competition with a 65-71--136 on day one.
The Morris Williams Invitational will conclude on Saturday with 18 holes. The Red Storm will tee off on No. 10, with Quinn going first at 8:33 a.m., Crowley at 8:42, Wilson at 8:51, McCormick at 9, and Costanza at 9:09. Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.com.
For all the latest news on the Johnnies as they continue the Morris Williams Invitational, log on to RedStormSports.com and follow the team (@STJ_MensGolf) on Twitter. You can join the conversation with the hashtag, #stjmg.
