Wednesday, March 10, 2004

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (March 10, 2004) - The East Tennessee State Buccaneer men's golf team enjoyed its best performance of the year so far, finishing fourth in the Gen. Jim Hackler Intercollegiate played Monday and Tuesday at the TPC of Myrtle Beach. The Bucs beat Top 15 teams such as South Carolina and Wake Forest in the event.

Sophomore Noel Kavanagh (Westport, Ireland) led the way for the Bucs, carding a three-round score of 7-over-par 223 (73-77-73). Kavanagh finished 10 strokes back of Pepperdine's Alex Coe, who captured the individual championship and helped power Pepperdine to the team title by six strokes over Arkansas.

Along with Kavanagh, the Bucs - who finished with a team score of 29-over 893 (299-297-297) - got solid efforts from junior Jeremy Hobson (Thonotosassa, Fla.), freshman Rhys Davies (Bridgend, Wales) and sophomore Andrew Paduch (Johnson City). Hobson finished tied for 29th at 9-over, while Davies placed tied for 33rd at 10-over and Paduch carded a score of 11-over good for a 38th-place finish.

The Bucs will return to action March 19-21 at the GCAA Hall of Fame/Redstone Invitational in Houston, Texas.