Elizabethtown College began their fall golf campaign on Sept. 9, teeing off at their home course at the Hershey Country Club East course located 20 minutes off campus in neighboring Dauphin County. All eyes were on the Blue Jays after their spring Blue Jay Invitational ended with a first-place trophy after career-low performances by sophomore Jeremy Otto and junior Dylan Poalucci.
Etown’s women’s golf team finished third of five teams last season, hoping to put themselves in the top two to start their fall campaign. Seven other teams participated in the event, including fellow Landmark Conference opponents, Juniata College and Moravian University. The Moravian Greyhounds last season fell short to the Blue Jays in the men’s division by only one shot, with Etown barely edging out the Greyhounds.
Under another career-low for Otto, Etown claimed their second straight Blue Jay Invitational trophy, shooting 10 over par and combining for a team score of 294, a program career-low. Otto, tied with seniors Drew Byrd and Chris Kilduff, shot two over par, netting scores of 73 on the par 71 course. With each of them scoring a +2, they tied for the fourth best score in the men’s division, setting themselves up for the win.
Senior John Harrison rounded out the scoring Blue Jay golfers, shooting four over par with a round score of 75, tying for ninth place in the competition. Junior Chase Nessleroad finished with a score of 14 over par, ending his performance with an 85. The team edged out another Landmark Conference opponent in this invitational, with the Juniata Eagles falling short by three shots to the Blue Jays. Etown and the Eagles took care of business, being the only two teams to break the team score of 300.
Etown’s men’s team fielded a B team for the invitational, placing sixth out of the 11 team field. The Blue Jays’ second team was led by first-year Paul Fulfer and senior Jude Kane, scoring seven over par and netting a score of 78 on the day, placing themselves tied for 15th overall.
Following behind the two golfers, first-year Talan Spittler finished the day with a +13, Poalucci ended with a +14 and senior Cole Hamon rounded out the day with a +17, placing 28th, 31st and 39th respectively. The Blue Jays’ performance was improved from the last time out at the course, as they finished the spring invitational tied for ninth with Lebanon Valley College.
Led by first-year Emma Leo, Etown’s women’s team finished third in a six team field, ahead of both Landmark Conference opponents in Juniata and Moravian. Leo finished her day shooting 24 over par, finishing 12th at the invitational.
Senior Alliya Kennedy and first-year Karsyn Peifer followed closely behind Leo, with Kennedy finishing 25 over par, tying for 13th, and Peifer finishing 27 over par, placing 15th. Etown’s scored golfers rounded out with seniors Alayna Kichman and Jillian Schwartz tying for 25th overall, posting scores of 45 over par.
The Blue Jays will compete next in Norristown, Pennsylvania for their next round at the Jefferson Golf Club for the Jefferson Quad Match on Sept. 25.
