Allegheny Rallies To Capture 2006 NCAC Championship
Allegheny's Chris Moore
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Allegheny College rallied from a five-stroke deficit in the final round to capture the 2006 North Coast Athletic Conference Men's Golf Championship at Windy Knoll Golf Club in Springfield, Ohio. The Gators used a final-round 294 in the 54-hole competition to overtake four-time defending champion Ohio Wesleyan University, which carded a 304 in the third round. Allegheny shot an 895 to take its ninth conference title, compared to a 900 for Ohio Wesleyan and a 922 for host and third-place finisher Wittenberg.
A freshman led the charge for the Gators, who had all five players finish in the top 10 to claim All-NCAC honors. After opening with a blistering two-under-par 69 on Friday, Moore carded a 77 in the second round - which was split between nine holes on Friday and nine more on Saturday - and finished with a flourish, carding a 72 to finish with a tournament-best 218. Ohio Wesleyan sophomore Rory Hotaling, who was tied with Moore for first place after Friday's 27 holes, came in second with a 219.
Kenyon's Peter Wilson and Wittenberg freshman Garrett Smith shared third place in the final standings, carding matching 223s. Smith posted one of just four sub-par rounds played on the weekend, bringing it home with a 70 in the final round to move up more than 10 spots in the standings. Rounding out the first-team All-NCAC honorees was Ohio Wesleyan's Justin Schroeder, the 2005 medalist, who checked in with a 226 after following up a disappointing 80 in the opening round to card back-to-back 73s.
The rest of the top 10 included Kyle Jastromb of Allegheny in sixth place with a 228, Allegheny's Chad Kosanovic with a 229 in seventh place and a three-way tie for eighth place with matching 230s - Allegheny's Drew Denton and Mike Wolfe and Ohio Wesleyan's Jeff Nieman. Those five comprise the conference's second-team honorees in 2006.
Coach of the Year honors were shared by Ohio Wesleyan's Jon Whithaus and Allegheny's Jeff Grof.
Wabash took fourth place with a 948, led by freshman Jordan Vice, who was in a four-way tie for 12th place with a 232. Wooster checked in with a fifth-place finish at 953, two strokes better than sixth-place Denison. Kenyon placed seventh, followed by Hiram and Oberlin in the final standings.