Golf team struggles again at McLaughlin

The Owls finished the McLaughlin Tournament in Farmingdale, N.Y., in 16th place out of 18 teams. Senior Eric Plisko finished five over par.

The struggles continued this weekend for the men’s golf team on the Bethpage Red Course at the McLaughlin Tournament in Farmingdale, N.Y.

The Owls finished the tournament in 16th place out of 18 teams with a combined stroke score of 885. That equals 45 strokes over par for the three-day tournament. Temple’s final-day score of 302 was dead last.

The lone bright spot for the Owls continued to be the play of senior Eric Plisko. Plisko finished well individually, with a score of 215, five over par. He ended up in a tie for 21st place in the tournament. That comes after Plisko finished in a tie for 30th in the Navy Fall Classic last weekend.

On the second day of the tournament, Plisko shot the Owls’ first round of par on the season with an even score 70, good for a tie for 10th overall on the day. The next best individual round for the Owls came from junior Andrew Mason, who shot a one-over-par 71 on the first day of play.

The Bethpage Red course proved to be difficult for almost all the teams in the tournament. Only two teams finished with scores below par – the tournament champion Coastal Carolina, with a five-under-par 835, and the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, which ended the tournament with a one-under-par 839.

Six teams recorded rounds under par, and all of them came from the tournament’s top four teams. Coastal Carolina did it twice with a 277 and a 278. UNC Wilmington’s 275 on the first day was the lowest team round of the tournament. Towson’s 278 and 279 and Johnson and Wales-Miami’s 278 rounded out the low scores.

Plisko’s final five-over-par 215, which tied for 21st overall, led the Owls. Mason’s 12-over-par 222 came in next at 57th. Juniors Mark Edmonson and Joseph Kim finished in 68th and 81st place, respectively. Redshirt freshman Devin Bibeau wrapped up the Owls’ golfers with a 24-over-par 234 and an 88th-place finish in the 93-player field.

Harvard’s Greg Shuman, Towson’s Nyasha Mauchaza and Coastal Carolina’s Sam Lyons all finished with scores of two-under-par 208 for a three-way share of first place.

The golf team returns to the links this week at the Adams Cup of Newport today. On Oct. 3, the Owls travel to New Haven, Conn., to compete in the McDonald Cup.

Ryan Rosengrant can be reached at ryan.rosengrant@temple.edu.