New Haven, Conn. – The Albertus Magnus College men's golf team continued to improve on the links during their second varsity season in the fall of 2016, as the team competed in four tournaments and earned a pair of dual-match victories at their home course.
For the second straight year, Alling Memorial Golf Course in New Haven served as the home course for the Falcons. The 6,248-yard track is a par-72 and played host to a pair of dual matches this year.
Albertus Magnus went undefeated in dual-match play in the Elm City this autumn for the first time in program history. The two triumphs were also a new program-best for the Falcons after winning one during the 2015 campaign.
Following the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship in mid-October, junior southpaw Zach Schatz (East Haven, Conn.) represented AMC on the GNAC All-Sportsmanship Team.
Albertus Magnus was led once again this year by senior No. 1 Aaron Macchia (Utica, N.Y.). He carded the low score for the Falcons in every event this fall and every round he's played in during his career. Macchia has twice earned low individual medalist honors this season. Both instances came at home in dual-match play. His stroke average this fall is 80.2. He shot a season-best 78 and finished third at the Mitchell Invitational in early September. He closed out his career with a 17th-place place finish at the conference championship thanks to shooting a two-day score of 157 (78-79).
Schatz firmly established himself as the team's No. 2 player in 2016 after a strong sophomore campaign last autumn. Schatz picked up a pair of top-five finishes this year and he also landed in 12th at the season-opening Mitchell Invitational. He has a stroke average of 88.0 and he shot a season-best 82 in the opening round of the GNAC Championship.
Senior Tyler Donnan (Meriden, Conn.) has also emerged as a threat to go low for Albertus Magnus. In two appearances on the links, he has a stroke average of 95. In his season debut, he carded an 89 and finished third in a dual match against the Mariners.
Other contributors for the squad this fall were senior Tom Moore (East Haven, Conn.), sophomore Elijah Thomas (New Haven, Conn.) and junior Tom Crocco (Kings Park, N.Y.). Moore and Thomas have shown vast improvement on the links since the beginning of the season. In his first year with the team, Crocco competed for a spot in the scoring lineup.
The team opened the year with a fourth-place finish at the Mitchell Invitational. At the one-day, 18-hole event, Macchia carded the low round of the day for the Falcons with a 78 to finish third. He led the field in par-5 scoring, shooting one under par on those holes. Macchia recorded a team-best two birdies to go along with eight pars. Schatz landed in 12th thanks to a 91. He had a pair of pars, while shooting two-over par on the par-5's.
In their second tournament of the season, the Falcons finished 11th at the MCLA Invitational. The event was the biggest Albertus Magnus played in this fall, as Macchia led the team with an 82, which was good enough to land him in a tie for 19th. Schatz was next in the clubhouse for Albertus Magnus and he carded a score of 89.
In mid-September, the team picked up its first win of the season and the second in program history by taking down Mitchell, 368-381, in dual-match play. Albertus Magnus saw three players finish in the top-four led by Macchia with an eight-over par 80. Macchia earned low individual medalist honors thanks to carding a pair of birdies and seven pars. He ended the day with a birdie on the par-5 18th. Donnan had arguably his strongest round as a Falcon, carding seven pars en route to an 89 which was good enough to land in third-place. Schatz played well off the tee for AMC and finished in fourth with a 94. Schatz had a birdie on the par-4 fifth and added five pars.
After a 12th-place finish at the Westfield State Invitational, AMC began October with a resounding dual-match victory against Eastern Nazarene. It marked the second victory in a row against the Lions for the Falcons. Macchia earned low individual medalist honors with an 80, while Schatz continued his strong play with an 88 to finish in solo second.
The team closed out the year by competing in the two-day, 36-hole GNAC Championship. Albertus Magnus ended the year by firing a program-record team score of 350 to finish in the ninth-place in the two-day event. The Falcons shot a 356 in the opening round to finish the Championship with an aggregate score of 706. The nine-team event was hosted by Southern Maine and contested at the 6,555-yard, par-71 Gorham Country Club.
For the latest information on the men's golf team and Albertus Magnus athletics, follow AMCAthletics on Twitter and visit AlbertusFalcons.com.
