SJU Athletics Photos

PHILADELPHIA (6/01/04) - Despite the loss of the team's top player for half the year and regularly fielding one of the youngest lineups in the Atlantic 10 Conference, the Saint Joseph's men's golf team maintained its reputation as one of the East's up and coming programs in 2003-04, solidifying its status as a contender for the Conference crown. Senior Brian McDermott and sophomore Sean Seese provided leadership for a young squad that lost the services of A-10 Performer of the Year Billy Stewart after the fall season. Steady and reliable, McDermott played in all but three rounds during his stellar four-year career on Hawk Hill. He finished the year ranked third on the team in stroke average, carding 78.6 strokes per round over the year. He played his best golf as the year progressed and was the team's top finisher at the A-10 Championships, placing 14th overall. Seese, meanwhile, continued to show why he is one of the region's top linksters. The only Hawk to play all 25 rounds during the year, he was tabbed as the team's Most Valuable Player. He averaged 74.8 strokes in the fall and led the squad in the spring with a 76.9 average. He was the team's top finisher in six events, including three top 20 finishes and a pair of top 10s. He placed 16th at A-10s. Stewart, who became the first player in league history to capture both Rookie and Performer of the year honors in 2003, posted strong numbers in the fall. He led the team with a 74.7 stroke average in 12 rounds and delivered a pair of top 10 finishes, before a hand injury sidelined him for the entire spring season. A trio of talented freshman, including Ryan McCarty, Chris Reedman and Jim Robertson, earned the opportunity to compete in the fall and emerged as regulars in the team's lineup by the spring season. Reedman finished with the best average among the newcomers, notching 77.4 strokes in the fall, third on the team, and 78.9 strokes for the year. McCarty and Robertson, though, perhaps progressed more over the courseof the year. Robertson averaged 79.9 strokes, while McCarty, who turned in a top 20 finish at Delaware, tallied 80.4 strokes per round. Seniors Tom Spano and Bill Devlin provided the team with quality depth in the lineup. Each made spot starts for the team during the year. Senior Ryan MacDonald, and juniors Tom Flatley and Steve Curry rounded out the squad.