Sunday, April 06, 2008

EVANS, Ga. (April 6, 2008) - Senior Gareth Shaw (Lisburn, Northern Ireland) entered Sunday's final round of the Administaff ASU Invitational tied for the overall lead, but even after firing an impressive 5-under 67 he was edged out by UCLA's Lucas Lee for the tournament crown from the Champions Retreat Golf Club. As a team, the 31^st ranked Buccaneers placed third out of the 18-team field, with their 7-under 569.  

After rains washed out Saturday's play, the 54-hole tournament was lowered to 36 with the final round being contested Sunday. The rain-shortened tournament was the first 36-hole event in the event's history since 1979, when Augusta College claimed the title.

Shaw, the 27^th ranked golfer, tied a career-low (5-under 67) after posting six birdies on the afternoon. The Lisburn, Northern Ireland native entered the clubhouse with the lead but Lee closed out the day with a 7-under 65 to finish the tournament at 10-under 134. Shaw shot an 8-under 136.

"Gareth played a solid tournament and finished strong," added head coach Fred Warren, whose team's third-place finish tied a season best and 12-under on Sunday was the second lowest round of the day.

The Bucs shot a 276 on Sunday, which was the second lowest round of the season for ETSU, and only UCLA's 20-under was better on the day.

Senior Cian McNamara (Limerick, Ireland) moved from 54^th to a tie for 15^th after shooting 4-under and finishing the weekend at 1-under 134. McNamara carded a season-low 68 on Sunday to jump 49 slots.

Rounding out the ETSU attack was freshman Rhys Enoch's (Cornwall, England) stellar play on Sunday. Enoch fired a 3-under 69 to finish tied for 38^th with a final score of 146.

The sixth ranked Bruins swept both the individual and team title by ending the two-day tournament at 24-under 552. UCLA set a new tourney record for the lowest second round. The previous mark of 16-under 272 was shared by Georgia Tech (2003) and Tennessee (2002). Georgia, the second ranked team in the country, beat out the Bucs by one shot. The Bulldogs finished play at 8-under 568.

"Our guys played really well this weekend," said Warren. "This was a great tournament and we had a wonderful round of golf today."

The Bucs now have two weeks to prepare for the Atlantic Sun Championships and begin their quest for a second consecutive conference crown. The championship begins Monday, April 21 from the Chateau Elan Golf Club located in Braselton, Ga. 

For more information on men's golf, visit www.ETSUBucs.com.