Justin Pugh Takes Third in Ocean City Classic
Shooting a sizzling TWO UNDER PAR 70 Justin Pugh (Sr Martinsburg) paced
the Rams and the field through the fiercest day of golf played this
fall. The winds blew constantly above 25 MPH and the undulating greens
were made even tougher by recently being aerated. Putts wobbled and
were hard to keep on course. Justin remarked a putt he hit went right
off an aeration hole then left off another until it again straightened
to find the cup.
Figuring the second day to be at least less windy the field was rather
greeted with the same wind and even higher (gusts of 35 mph) winds and
temperatures hovering just above 30! This day a round of 80 would be as
good as par! On day two Justin shot an 81 to again pace the team as the
Rams moved up a spot to finish 6th in the 16 team field.
Other scoring saw Jason Pierson at 168, Ross Shapiro at 170, Mike
Masters at 173, and Dave Malaskey at 174.
Allegheny College of Pittsburgh won the two day event at 607 and Ben
Rathfon (Allegheny) posted a 145 as medalist.
"The only issue I was disappointed in was our lack of TOUGHNESS at
times. everyone was seeing the same conditions we were not as focused
at times to withstand the adversity. I said an 80 would not be bad and
that how we handled FRUSTRATION would determine our ability to stay
competitive. If we had shot 80 for each man we would have taken THIRD.
Justin showed great focus BOTH days and I single out his effort as an
example of keeping yourself competitive at all times! Justin’s 76
average (leading the team) is a tribute to both his work ethic and his
determination this fall"
This closes out the fall season. Next Spring opens at Wilson North
Carolina at the NC Wesleyan Invitational on February 17.
(From the desk of Coach Mike Jacobs, 304-876-5233, Shepherd College,
Shepherdstown, WV 25443)