WVU Golf Finishes 2nd At Rutherford Intercollegiate; Best Finish Of Inaugural Year

The WVU golf team had the best finish of its inaugural season with a second at the Rutherford Intercollegiate.

The tournament, held at Penn State’s Blue Golf Course saw the Mountaineers finish at one over par, trailing only No. 31 Penn State. With a 284-284-285=853, the West Virginia golf team bested their previous team low of 859, set at the Joe Feaganes Marshall Invitational in September. The host Nittany Lions won the team title with a score of 843 for nine under par, while Xavier took third place at nine over with an 861.

A pair of Mountaineers finished in the top 10, as Alan Cooke tied as the runner-up and Max Sear tied for fourth overall.

“I’m very proud of the guys this week,” coach Sean Covich said. “We showed we can compete and, more importantly, our guys now believe in themselves. We have some validation for our hard work. This will provide some momentum for our young program.”

Both Cooke and Sear fired 67s in the final round of play, marking the second time this season Cooke has registered a 67 in tournament play. Cooke carded a 70-70-67 for a 207, besting his previous tournament by nine strokes to finish six under. His score is the lowest three-round score by an individual this season.

Sear shot 70-71-67=208 to finish five under par. His fourth-place finish marks his third top-10 finish of his rookie season.

Tristan Nicholls was the third Mountaineer to finish in the top 25, tying for 22nd place. He carded a 71-74-74=219 for his best three-round score of the season, finishing six over.

Chris Williams shot 73-73-77=223, tying his lowest round of the year. He finished tied for 31st place at 10 over par. Easton Renwick was a stroke back, recording a 75-70-79=224 to take 35th place at 11 over par.

Competing as an individual, Avery Schneider tied for 48th place at 14 over. He finished with a score of 79-73-75=227.

The Mountaineers rest up next week before heading to their first-ever Big 12 Championships. The tournament will be held April 29-May 1 at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas.

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