The Colonials’ Thomas Blankvoort finished with an even par-144 April 7 en route to a first-place finish at the two-day GW Invitational. The Invite, which took place at Swan Point Yacht and Country Club in Issue, Md., saw Blankvoort post back-to-back even par scores (72-72) beating Adrien Mork of McNeese State University by seven strokes.
“Thomas is playing great,” said GW coach Scott Allen. “He has carried us all spring.”
The Colonials team shot a combined 638 (319-319) to finish in a tie for ninth place with Villanova University in the 29-team field. McNeese state won the tournament with a score of 616 (305-311), while George Mason and Lehigh University tied for second (624)
GW’s Darren Ressler finished strong, tying for third place overall out of 149 competitors with an eight-over 152 (73-79). The team would have finished in second place if Darren Ressler’s score was included as one of GW’s four scores. Because Ressler had missed the previous tournament, Allen had him play as an individual and his score wasn’t counted in the Colonials’ team score.
Allen said he has seen his two sophomores Reid Rosenthal and Brad Friedlander improve their play over the spring as they have had more opportunities to play. Friedlander matched his low score of the year by shooting a 157 (79-78) while Rosenthal posted his best performance of the season shooting a 166 (83-83).
On March 26th and 27th, GW competed in the Colonial Invitational Tournament in Williamsburg, Va. The team finished tenth out of eighteen schools, shooting a combined 630. Blankvoort was the low scorer for the Colonials in the two-day event, finishing in a ninth place tie among 95 competitors.
During spring break, GW beat the University of Maine in Bermuda by 18 strokes. Friedlander and Ressler finished in first and second places, respectively.
The Colonials traveled to New Orleans March 11, where they played in the Bob Browne/Sportscare Classic Golf Tournament. The team finished in 14th place out of 17 teams.
“We have had respectable finishes even though we have been shorthanded,” Allen said. “We are just a few strokes away from being in the top two or three in tournaments.”
The team will compete in the East Carolina Invitational this weekend in Greenville, N.C.
“We will be facing a stronger field than we did the past two because we will be facing more southern schools who are traditionally stronger due to better weather,” Allen said.
