The Ave Maria University men's golf team had a historic showing at the Coastal Georgia Fall Invitational, played Monday and Tuesday at Sanctuary Cove Golf Club in Waverly. The Gyrenes, in a field of 16 that included many of the nation's best, set a new program record for a 54-hole tournament with a team total of 900, while junior Gabriel DeCasas set school records for 54-hole scores and single round scores.
DeCasas utterly shattered Ave Maria's 54-hole tournament record, shooting a seven-under 209 on the par 72 course. His mark was eleven shots better than the existing record, set by James Desanges during the 2013-14 season. The California native, who finished tied for sixth overall, went under par in all three rounds at Sanctuary Cove, shooting a 71 in the first round and a 70 in the second, both on Monday. On Tuesday, DeCasas again added his name to the school record book with a 68. He made six birdies on the round, including a birdie on the final hole of the day to clinch his school record round.
Ty Kaufman made his AMU debut as the Gyrenes' number two finisher. Kaufman finished in the top half of the field, led by a two-under 70 in the first round. Kaufman added a 73 in the second round and a 77 in the final round to finish the tournament at 220, a score that would have tied the school record if not for DeCasas. Kaufman was especially good on the back nine holes of Sanctuary Cove, making nine of his ten birdies on holes 10 through 18.
All six of Ave Maria's golfers posted at least one round in the 70s. Eric Cherubini carded rounds of 77 in each of the final two rounds, while Ben Achziger fired a first round 75 and a second round 78 in his Ave Maria debut. Sam Hyman added a 75 of his own in the final round, and Joe Pakuluk had his best round of the week on Tuesday as well, posting a 76.
Ave Maria's team score of 900, just 36 over par, was seven shots better than the previous school record of 907, set on three occasions. The team title at Coastal Georgia was won by No. 12 Southeastern, who held on to a one-shot win over No. 22 Truett-McConnell. No. 2 Dalton State, No. 6 USC Beaufort, and host No. 7 Coastal Georgia rounded out the top five. The individual title was won by Reinhardt's Brooks Gineris, who shot an 11-under par 205.
The Gyrenes will be back on the course in two weeks' time for the Invite at Innisbrook, hosted by Dalton State College. That event will tee off on Monday, September 26 at Innisbrook Golf Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida. The final round is scheduled for the following day, and the tournament is again expected to include many of the top teams in the nation.
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