Over the past several months, the Fordham golf team has enjoyed a considerable amount of success, most recently by sharing in the accomplishment of golfer Brian Engstrom, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’15, whose 13th-overall finish at the Peacock invitational was good enough named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week.
Accomplishments like this are what tell the real story of the spring season. If you were to focus on the Fordham golf team’s eighth place finish at the Atlantic-10 (A-10) Championships, an event that was shortened by a three-day rain cancellation, you would be overlooking what has been an impressive season. The team took home fourth place at the Peackock Invitational, a strong follow-up showing after winning the Rhody Invitational just over a week earlier.
After finishing out the fall portion of the season with a first place finish at the Farleigh Dickinson University Golf Invitational, the team began the spring by continuing to win, this time at the La Salle Spring Invitational, where senior team captain Devon O’Rourke, FCRH ’12, placed second following a tie-breaker to determine the winner. In fact, all seven of Fordham’s team competitors had individual finishes in the top 20. The victory had the team at a final score of 621, 10 strokes ahead of next-best Iona.
The team win at the Rhody Invitational was a closer finish, with Fordham staying ahead of second place Sacred Heart by a mere three strokes. Both spring season team victories featured strong performances by Jason Del Rosso, FCRH ’13 who finished sixth overall at La Salle, and an impressive third overall at the Rhody Invitational in Rhode Island. Also vital to the team’s two wins was Connor Monaghan, FCRH ’13, who placed seventh overall in both spring wins.
“We really had it going this spring,” Monaghan said. “Overall, the spring went very well. Obviously we didn’t play as well as we would have liked to in the A-10’s, but we got two wins in the books.” As for the fall, Monaghan noted, “It’s going to be hard to replace team captain Devin O’Rourke, but we have a few guys who showed up this season in Pat Herlihy (FCRH ’13), Brandon Nolan (FCRH ’14), and Brian Engstrom (FCRH ‘15).” About Engstrom in particular, Monaghan observed how “he has come a long way since the fall.” As long as he can keep up his current pace, Monaghan should be a vital part of the team’s effort to continue succeeding in the fall.
At the end of the spring the team has collected two fourth place finishes and two team wins. Add that to their fall 2011 campaign and the team is sitting pretty with three wins, a second place finish and a couple of fourths. The team got stronger as they gained chemistry over the fall and showed that with their consistent performance in the spring. Several returning members landed individual finishes in the top-10 and, as Monaghan expressed, are looking to “step it up” in the coming fall. They look to continue winning team events and, hopefully, fare even better in the coming season.
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