Walp takes second after round-best 75

WALP'S ROUND-LOW 75 PACES BULLDOGS AT LONNIE BARTON INVITATIONAL

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Freshman Joseph Walp (Portland, Maine) led Tuesday action at the Lonnie Barton Invitational with a round-best 75 to finish tied for second overall, pacing the Bryant University golf team to a fourth-place team finish in Daytona Beach, Fla., in the two-day event.

Walp's tournament total of 156 (+12) came in just a stroke behind individual champion Brock Pompeani of Robert Morris, while teammate Zach Garbacik (South Hadley, Mass.) would finish 11th overall with a two-round 161 after entering day two play tied for fourth. Samuel Russell (Southborough, Mass.) picked up a 15th-place finish in the spring opener with a two-round 167, as sophomore Conor McGovern (Darien, Conn.) jumped up four places to 21st with a Tuesday 85, a seven-stroke improvement over his opening round. Senior Brendan Allen (Chelmsford, Mass.) would finish the tournament knotted for 22nd overall (178).

As a team, the Bulldogs carded a 332 Tuesday to finish with a two-day total of 657. Tournament host LIU Brooklyn took home the top spot with a team score of 627, with Sacred Heart finishing five strokes behind (632). Robert Morris would earn third at 650, seven strokes ahead of the Black and Gold. St. Francis Brooklyn rounded out the tournament field with a score of 731.

The Bulldogs return to the Ocean State, but won't hit the greens again until April 6-7 at the Rhody Invitational at Green Valley Country Club in Portsmouth, R.I.