Walp's two-under 70 highlights final round

WALP FINISHES ROUND THREE TWO UNDER PAR, BULLDOGS TAKE 15TH OVERALL

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University golf team improved its round-three score by an impressive 19 strokes and saw rookie Joseph Walp (Portland, Maine) card a team-low 70 Tuesday as the Bulldogs took 15th at the 2012 Hartford Hawk Invitational.

The three-round team score of 938 (323-317-298) came in just six strokes behind Northeast Conference opponent Central Connecticut. Walp's Tuesday afternoon 70 (-2) marked the only Bryant round on the tournament to finish under par and bumped the freshman up 25 places in the individual competition, from tied for 70th after round two to his final place tied for 45th.

Only classmate Kyle Buschmann (East Haddam, Conn.) trumped his two-day total, carding a 73 in the final round for a 230 (+14) on the tournament. He would finish knotted at 32nd overall.

Sophomore Conor McGovern (Darien, Conn.) came in tied for 56th (236) on the three-round event after a Tuesday 76 marked his best round of the set. Senior Samuel Russell (Southborough, Mass.) finished knotted at 69th with a 241 total, while Matthew Pelletier (Dartmouth, Mass.)'s 254 left the junior in 82nd.

The host Hawks took home the tournament team title but saw Patrick Ross fall from first to fourth with a round-three 73, making room for Temple's Brandon Matthews to take the outright Hartford Hawk Invitational individual title with a two-under 214.

The Bulldogs have nearly the next two weeks off before returning to action at The Connecticut Cup, hosted at the Ellington Ridge Country Club in Ellington, Conn., Oct. 8-9.