The NC State men’s golf team competed in the Watersound Invitational Feb. 19-21 in the Sunshine State. The Pack traveled to Panama City Beach, and ended up settling for an eighth-place finish in its first contest of the spring season.
Freshman Michael La Sasso led the team throughout the invitational, and round one was no exception. In the opening round on Sunday, La Sasso shot an impressive seven-under par. He ended with an individual score of 65 through 18 holes of golf, which was good enough for the lead after day one.
With his first-round score, the freshman standout tied the ninth-lowest round in program history. He shot a 74 and 75 in the final two rounds and finished tied for 22nd place overall.
Senior Maximilian Steinlechner, who’s name alone should land him on the Haskins Award watch list, finished the tournament tied for 28th overall at an even par and was second on the team. After shooting a score of 75 in the first round, he posted a 71 on day two and a 70 to close out play.
Senior Brandon Einstein also played great golf over the weekend. He finished third on the Pack squad and tied for 31st place overall. His best round was on Sunday, where he shot a 71 through 18 holes.
Junior Spencer Oxendine finished the invitational 49th overall. The Fayetteville native shot one-under par on the second day of the tournament, which was his personal best score of the tournament by four strokes.
Heading into day two of play, the team was in fifth place in the field of 11 teams. NC State trailed Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech, who were tied for the lead, as well as Alabama and Florida State. Day two saw little improvement for the Wolfpack, as the team fell one spot to sixth place heading into the final day of the Watersound Invitational.
Play concluded on Tuesday Feb. 21, with NC State towards the back of the bunch. Steinlechner led the team on day three, shooting a 70 for two-under par. He shot 216 on 54 holes of golf, which was only bested by La Sasso, who shot 214. The Pack finished with a score of 867 after three days, which was 41 points off the lead.
The Wolfpack men faced extremely tough competition down in Florida. The competition fielded three teams ranked within the top 15: No. 1 Vanderbilt, No. 11 Florida State and No. 12 Georgia Tech. Oklahoma State, Alabama, Mississippi State, Notre Dame and Clemson are also ranked within the top 40.
Vanderbilt took home the team victory, beating Georgia Tech by one shot. While an eighth place finish is not what the red-and-white had hoped for, this invitational allowed NC State to shake off any winter rust against serious competition.
NC State men’s golf will be back in action on Monday, Mar. 6 for the Wake Forest Invitational, which is being held at the legendary Pinehurst No. 2.
