Mountaineer Golf Returns to Florida

Mountaineer Golf Returns to Florida

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Feb. 10, 2018) – The West Virginia University golf team returns to the Sunshine State for the second straight week, as the Mountaineers travel to Palm City, Florida, to compete at the Martin Downs Collegiate from Sunday through Tuesday at the Martin Downs Golf Club.

UNCG will host seven teams in addition to the Mountaineers. Boston College, Elon, George Mason, James Madison, Mercer, Seton Hall, Lehigh and Western Caroline will comprise the rest of the field. Golfers will play 18 holes each day for a total of 54 holes on the par-72, 6,802-yard Osprey Course.

“We drove the ball well last week in our match versus Penn State,” coach Sean Covich said. “(We) hit a lot of greens as well, but struggled with our scoring clubs. Hopefully, last weekend, along with some extra practice time here in Florida will help us correct those mistakes. It should be an interesting week with a brand-new lineup featuring four first-year players for us. I know the young guys are pumped to be in the starting five and from a few conversations I’ve had with the older guys I can tell they’re fired up because they’re not in the lineup, ready to prove that they should be. When the entire roster is this competitive, you’re in a great spot as a coach. It will be fun to watch it all play out this week.”

Max Sear, Matthew Sharpstene, Philipp Matlari, Logan Perkins and Mark Goetz will compete for WVU, with Avery Schneider, Tristan Nicholls and Etienne Papineau competing as individuals.

Three true freshmen in Sharpstene, Perkins and Goetz will play this weekend. Sharpstene ranks third on the team with a 73.23 stroke average and a pair of top-20 finishes in tournament play. He took fifth last weekend against Penn State, shooting two over par with a 74. Goetz and Perkins have each played in two tournaments in their first season, and both competed against the Nittany Lions last weekend.

The Mountaineers dropped a head-to-head contest with rival Penn State at Reunion Resort in Orlando last weekend. WVU shot 378 as a team, finishing 18 over par while the Nittany Lions finished with a team score of 363 for three over par. Six players represented each team, with the top five scores counting for their respective programs.

Sear took second and shot one over par with a 73 to lead the team against PSU, while Matlari finished three over par with a 75. Sear ranks second on the team with a 73.15 scoring average along with a pair of top-10 finishes and a top-15 finish.

West Virginia returns to Florida once again Feb. 24-25, traveling to Tallahassee to compete in the Seminole Intercollegiate.