After rain, M. Golf is runner-up

When the Penn men's golf team left for the Princeton Invitational this past Thursday, it had one thing on its mind -- redemption. The Quakers finished behind Princeton last weekend in the Ivy League Championships and were confronted with a chance to save face. Unfortunately for the Quakers, the golf gods were wearing orange and black. Due to inclement weather, the tournament was shortened to just one day. Saturday's round saw the Quakers shoot an impressive 295. Princeton finished first, though, with a terrific four-over 288. Leading the Quakers was sophomore Mike Russell with a round of 72. Junior Kyle Moran fired an impressive 73, freshman Endel Liias posted a 74, senior captain Rob Goldfaden shot a 76 and freshman standout Chad Perman shot a 78. "Losing to Princeton is not my idea of fun," Perman said. "It always helps to play your own course." According to Perman, "If you hit the ball in the correct place, you can definitely score well on this course." Princeton's Judd Pritchard did exactly as Perman said, as he shot a blistering, three-under 68 to win top individual honors. For Russell, the gloomy skies and rain-soaked course could not put a damper on his excitement. A two-handicap, Russell fired a one-over 72 to lead the Quakers. His rise to the top of the Quakers, however, was even more impressive than his Saturday score. Russell began the season not knowing if he would ever see action for the Red and Blue. He tried out for the men's golf team in his freshman year, but narrowly missed the cut. This year, he made the team, although it took him nearly the whole fall season to do so. "I tried out the entire fall," Russell said. "I didn't make the team officially until I shot a 75 and led the team at the Princeton Invitational in the fall." According to Russell, his real break came during the annual spring break golf trip. "The seniors were unable to go on the spring trip," Russell said. "[Penn coach] Francis [Vaughn] gave me a chance. It felt good to get my first tournament [in the top five] under my belt." Since the spring trip, Russell has played in half of the spring tournaments. But it has certainly not been easy for Russell to qualify for these tournaments. Vaughn has each player try out the week prior to the tournament. "It's a dogfight," Russell said. "Four or five guys are all vying for one or two spots. Luckily, I played well at Philly Cricket and was able to get into the starting lineup. It's exciting." According to Russell, next year the Quakers will be extremely deep, especially in the bottom of their lineup. "If one guy isn't playing well one week, we have three of four guys who can replace him and play well," Russell said. As strong as the Quakers can potentially be next year, they will no doubt miss the leadership and outstanding play of senior captain Rob Goldfaden and senior Rob Hunt. Both of these players set the stage for what might be imminent dominance for the Red and Blue.

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