May 7, 2008

BRYANT EARNS TRIP TO NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP WITH ONE-STROKE WIN IN EAST/NORTHEAST SUPER REGIONAL; THREE BULLDOGS FINISH IN TOP 10

NEW CASTLE, Dela. -- Led by a trio of top-10 finishes, the Bryant University golf team combined to shoot a 916 to take first place at the 2008 NCAA Division II East/Northeast Super Regional, earning its 18th NCAA National Championship appearance and first since 2005.

The Bulldogs entered the final round of super regional competition with a two-stroke lead, an advantage cut to just one when the final putt was over Wednesday afternoon.

Senior Nick Caccia (Riverside, RI) climbed from tenth at the end of Round Two action to take a third-place overall individual finish (227) to lead a trio of Bulldogs who would finish the three-day tournament in the top-10.

Sophomore Jason Thresher (West Suffield, Conn.) and senior Scott Congdon (Foxboro, Mass.) each turned in 80-shot performances Wednesday to finish at a three-round total of 229, good to tie the pair for sixth overall.

Brian Mackey of Dominican College and Patrick Schwarze of St. Thomas Aquinas took first and second, respectively, shooting a 222 and 225 for the regional.

The Bulldogs shot a 313 for Round Three, while second-place Pace University shot a 312 to fall just one stroke short of Bryant and finish with a combined score of 917. St. Thomas Aquinas (920) finished third as a team, while Post University (936) and Adelphi University (939) rounded out the top five. UMass Lowell (942), Bentley College (964) and Wilmington University (969) finished out the field of eight.

Freshman Eric Tankanow (Worcester, Mass.) finished tied for 12th after Wednesday's final round (232), while Mike Philipp (Bristol, Conn.) finished tied for 27th (240).

Bryant will now continue on to the NCAA National Championship at the DII Spring Championship Festival in Houston, Texas, May 14-17, 2008.