Feb. 22, 2008

2008 NEC Men's Golf Preseason Poll Release

2008 NEC Women's Golf Preseason Poll Release

The Sacred Heart men's and women's golf teams were picked to finish third and fifth, respectively, in the 2008 Northeast Conference Preseason Coaches Polls released by the league earlier this week. The Pioneer men received three first place votes in this spring's poll, while the women picked up one first place nod.

Sacred Heart hopes to contend for its first-ever NEC crown under the direction of first year head coach Ed Connolly. The Pioneers return a pair of all-NEC performers from a year ago in seniors Tommy Campbell (Wall, NJ/Wall) and Patrick Fillian (Tinton Falls, NJ/St. Rose High School), who finished fifth (224) and tied for third (222), respectively at last year's championships. Also returning for the Pioneers are junior Matt Belizze (North Salem, NY/North Salem), who placed 19th in the 2007 championships with a three-day score of 230 and 2007 NEC Rookie of the Year Adam Petrasovic (Tecumseh, Ontario/St. Annes). The Tecumseh, Ontario native completed his freshman campaign with a 77.1 stroke average en-route to three top-10 finishes. Now in his second season, Petrasovic led the Pioneers to a second-place finish at the ECAC championships in the fall, firing a two-day score of 146.

Sacred Heart looks to improve upon last year's fourth place NEC finish under first year head coach Matthew McGreevey. Returning to the Pioneers are three of the Pioneers' top finishers from a year ago in juniors Jennifer Tierney (Danbury, CT/Danbury) and Joanne Martorana (Randolph, NJ/Randolph), as well as senior Lauren Foster (Newington, CT/Newington). Tierney placed 14th at the 2007 NEC event with a three-day total of 259, while Foster and Martorana placed 18th and 21st, respectively, with scores of 263 and 269. Last fall, Tierney recorded a sixth place finish at the SHU Fall Classic with a two-round score of 169, while senior Patricia Heyes (Durobin, Ontario/West Carleton Secondary) took 11th with a two-day mark of 180.