GREENSBORO, N.C. — Facing one of the strongest fields it will see during the regular season, the No. 16 Transylvania University men's golf team opened the Gate City Invitational with a 4-over-par team round, putting the Pioneers in sixth place Monday at historic Forest Oaks Country Club.
The strength of the field makes Transylvania's opening-round position particularly noteworthy. The tournament features eight nationally ranked teams, including No. 2 Huntingdon, No. 5 Methodist, No. 9 Kenyon, No. 12 Oglethorpe, No. 16 Transylvania, No. 20 Babson, No. 21 Lynchburg and No. 22 Guilford. That gives the Gate City Invitational eight Top-25 programs, two ranked in the Top 5 and four in the Top 12. Five more programs — Hampden-Sydney, Wittenberg, Greensboro, Gettysburg and Berry — are receiving votes in the national rankings. In all, 13 of the 17 primary teams in the field are either nationally ranked or receiving votes.
Transylvania more than held its own on the opening 18 holes.
Andy Steed and Carter Denton led the Pioneers with matching 1-under-par rounds, placing both in a tie for 10th individually. Their two red-number rounds highlighted a Transylvania performance that put the Pioneers ahead of several nationally recognized programs.
Seth Hickerson added a 2-over-par round and sits tied for 30th, while
Ty Ruttinger finished at 4-over and is tied for 53rd. Hank Schick completed the Transylvania lineup at 11-over.
Freshman
Will Carter, competing as an individual, also turned in a strong opening round at 2-over par, matching Hickerson and sitting tied for 30th.
At +4, No. 16 Transylvania finished the opening round sixth overall, ahead of No. 5 Methodist (+5), No. 12 Oglethorpe (+7), No. 21 Lynchburg (+9), No. 20 Babson (+10) and No. 22 Guilford (+14).
No. 2 Huntingdon showed why it entered the tournament as one of the nation's highest-ranked teams, grabbing the first-round lead with a 6-under-par total.
The leaderboard remains tightly packed behind Huntingdon. Only four shots separate second-place Rhodes and Kenyon from sixth-place Transylvania, giving the Pioneers an opportunity to make a significant move as play continues.
Team: +4 — 6th place
For a Transylvania program entering the event ranked No. 16 nationally, the Gate City Invitational provides an early-season measuring stick against some of the best programs in NCAA Division III golf. With two rounds remaining at Forest Oaks, the Pioneers have positioned themselves squarely in the mix against a field loaded with national contenders.
Transylvania University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the HCAC. To keep up to date with all of Transylvania Athletics, check out our website at transysports.com and follow @TransySports on Instagram.
