WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – It was a historic day on the golf course Sunday as Penn State Berks won its first North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) Men’s Golf Championship after posting a total score of 630 (309-321) at the two-day event hosted by Penn College at the Williamsport Country Club. The Nittany Lions will receive an automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championships, which will take place May 15-18 at the Grandover Resort in Greensboro, N.C.

Penn State Berks had a two-stroke lead over defending champion Rutgers University-Camden at the end of day one. The Nittany Lions followed that up with a 321 on Sunday to finish atop the nine-team field. The win by Penn State Berks brought an end to a five-year run by Rutgers University-Camden. Andrew Cornish (Limerick, Pa.), Matt Kreider (Lititz, Pa.) and Dan Fieger (Denver, Pa.) finished in the top ten to help lead Penn State Berks to the conference crown.

Andrew Cornish (Limerick, Pa.) from Penn State Berks was honored as the NEAC Golfer of the Year with a final score of 148 (70-78), becoming the first player in program history to finish as the individual medalist. In addition to his first-place finish, Cornish was also named NEAC Rookie of the Year as the top first-year finisher at the championship event. Cornish’s banner day adds to an outstanding season thus far for the Nittany Lions’ sophomore who was also placed on the NEAC All-Conference First Team.

Rutgers University-Camden and Penn College both finished with a two-day score of 638 but championship tiebreaking procedures gave Rutgers-Camden the NEAC runner-up trophy. The Scarlet Raptors were led by Sean Hughes (Washington Township, N.J.) and Richard Stolz (West Deptford, N.J.) who each put together a two-day score of 154.

Penn College finished third with Ned Baumbach (Elizabethtown, Pa.) and Austin Moscariello (New Columbia, Pa.) leading the Wildcats on the weekend. Moscariello shot a 79 on both days to finish fifth and earn the final spot on the NEAC All-Conference First Team. Baumbach posted a score of 77 on day one before finishing Sunday’s round with a score of 81 to place sixth.

Penn State Berks head coach Rick Bausher was recognized as the NEAC Coach of the Year for the second-straight season after a vote of his peers. Bausher, who is in his third year at Penn State Berks, has seen the Nittany Lions’ show tremendous growth under his guidance. In his first season, the Nittany Lions placed seventh at the NEAC Men’s Golf Championships before placing second last year and earning the program’s first title today.

SUNY Cobleskill placed fourth with a score of 654 (327-327) while Morrisville State College rounded out the top five with a score of 692 (348-344).  Full results from the championship event can be found here.

2017-18 NEAC Men's Golf All-Conference Team

Name	Institution	Hometown	Yr.	Score (1,2)
First Team
Andrew Cornish	Penn State Berks	Limerick, Pa.	So.	148 (70-78)
Sean Hughes	Rutgers-Camden	Washington Township, N.J.	So.	154 (78-76)*
Richard Stolz	Rutgers-Camden	West Deptford, N.J.	Jr.	154 (72-82)*
Matt Kreider	Penn State Berks	Lititz, Pa.	So.	157 (79-78)
Austin Moscariello	Penn College	New Columbia, Pa.	So.	158 (79-78)*
Second Team
Ned Baumbach	Penn College	Elizabethtown, Pa.	Jr.	158 (77-81)*
Dan Fieger	Penn State Berks	Denver, Pa.	Fr.	160 (81-79)*
Cody Latimer	SUNY Cobleskill	Mayville, N.Y.	Jr.	161 (79-82)
Colin Hizny	SUNY Cobleskill	Endicott, N.Y.	Jr.	162 (81-81)*
Brad Hefner	Morrisville State	Billings, Mt.	Jr.	162 (80-82)*
Third Team
Dicky Rhoads	Penn State Abington	Huntingdon Valley, Pa.	So.	163 (81-81)*
Sean Sigall	Rutgers-Camden	Sicklerville, N.J.	So.	163 (78-85)*
Dylan Mulvihill	SUNY Cobleskill	Clifton Park, N.Y.	Sr.	164 (81-83)
Ben Fails	Penn College	Hummelstown, Pa.	So.	165 (84-81)*
Brian Whelan	Penn College	Cresco, Pa.	Fr.	165 (76-89)*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Final place finish determined by tiebreaking procedures

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The North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) has fourteen NCAA Division III member institutions which include: Bryn Athyn College, Cazenovia College, College of St. Elizabeth, Gallaudet University, Keuka College, Lancaster Bible College, Pennsylvania College of Technology, Pennsylvania State University – Abington, Pennsylvania State University – Berks, SUNY Cobleskill, SUNY Morrisville State College, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Wells College, and Wilson College.  Associate members are: Cedar Crest College (W Swimming), D’Youville College (M Volleyball), Hilbert College (M&W Lacrosse), Medaille College (M&W Lacrosse, M Volleyball), Pennsylvania State University – Altoona (M Volleyball), and Rutgers University – Camden (M Golf). The NEAC has partnered with the North Atlantic Conference in the sports of field hockey and men’s tennis. For more information, please visit: www.neacsports.com.