The Pitt-Johnstown men's golf team capped the spring portion of its regular-season by tying for 8th place at the NCAA Division II Atlantic/East Regional Preview on Monday and Tuesday at Whispering Woods Golf Course.
The Mountain Cats, who were in 9th after round one, fired a 609 (+33), which included a 301 in the opening round and a 308 in the second round, to match Fairmont State in the 23-team field. Gannon, which came in ranked 29th in the country, won the tournament after defeating runner-up Davis & Elkins in the first hole of the playoff.
Although they took far different paths to get there, Mario Battaglia and Justin Scally each finished with a 5-over par 149 to tie four other players for 10th place in the 120-player field.
Battaglia led the tournament after day one with a 2-under par 70 before shooting 7-over in round two. Meanwhile, Scally was 4-over par following the opening round before firing a 1-over 73 in the second round to move up 28 spots.
Jake Morgan tied seven other players for 58th after a 13-over 157 performance. Mauricio Hernandez finished just one stroke behind him with a 14-over 158 to tie five others for 66th. Lucas Smith rounded out the Mountain Cats' lineup with a 15-over 159 to match six others for 72nd place.
Eli Ropietski, playing as an individual, shot an 8-over par 152 to tie six others for 25th place. Aidan Talent of Davis & Elkins won the individual title following a one-hole playoff that broke a tie with West Liberty's Brogan Bennett.
The Mountain Cats, who were ranked fourth in the most recent NCAA Atlantic Region Rankings, are set to compete in the Atlantic/East Regional Tournament on May 8-10 at Whispering Woods Golf Club.
