Springfield Claims First Ever New England Collegiate Conference Title
The Pride's Levings Named 2008 NECC Golfer of the
Year, while the Engineers' Swenson Named 2008 NECC Rookie of the
Year
CHICOPEE, Mass.-The Pride of Springfield College
accomplished a landmark feat for the New England Collegiate
Conference (NECC), taking the 2008 NECC Golf Championship title as
the first program to win a NECC Championship in the conference's
inaugural campaign.
The Pride shot a two-round winning total of 646 (324-322) to earn the championship trophy. Senior Greg Levings (Averill Park, N.Y.) was named the 2008 NECC Golfer of the Year for his medalist performance, shooting a 149 (76-73). Levings helped lead his team to victory, shooting a tournament low-round two over par 73 in Sunday's final round. He is a two-time NECC Golfer of the Week who is majoring in Physical Education at Springfield.
Springfield teammates Michael LaJoie (Sr., Enfield, Conn.) and Craig DiFranco (So., East Longmeadow, Mass.) joined Levings on the 2008 NECC All-Conference first team with their top five finishes. LaJoie was the runner-up with 154 (76-78), while DiFranco shot a 36-hole tally of 161 (81-80) for the final first-team spot in fifth place.
Pride head coach Joe Eadie was named the 2008 NECC Golf Coach of the Year as voted upon by all seven conference golf coaches. Eadie is in his 15th season at the helm of the Pride.
The Mitchell Mariners pulled off a 676 team score to notch the
2008 NECC Runners-Up plaque, shooting a first-round 337 and a
final-round 339. Leading the way for the Mariners were two
all-conference selections in freshman Mike Lepore
(Centerville, Mass.) and Matt Burke (Northborough,
Mass.). Lepore tied for third place overall with a two-round
158 (77-81). Burke, named second-team All-NECC, shot a 164 (83-81)
for a sixth-place finish.
Rounding out the team scores were the Becker Hawks (683), MIT Engineers (694), Daniel Webster Eagles (704), Elms Blazers (718) and Newbury Nighthawks. (774).
MIT Engineers' freshman Nick Swenson (Yorktown, Va.) was named the 2008 NECC Golf Rookie of the Year after his third place finish of 158 (82-76). Due to a tie-breaker situation, Swenson grabbed the honors as a result of having shot a bogey on the fifth hole, the course's most challenging hole. Swenson, a first-team All-NECC honoree, is a Biomedical Engineer major at MIT.
Rounding out the 2008 NECC All-Conference second team were Becker's Ben Malone (Jr., Westborough, Mass.), Elms' Ben Kwiatkowski (Jr., Chicopee, Mass.), Elms' Andrew Sullivan (So., West Springfield, Mass.) and MIT's Ted Keith (Sr., Acton, Mass.). Malone and Kwiatkowski each shot a 165, while Sullivan and Keith finished with a 166 and 167, respectively, over the 36-hole championship.
Despite a tie for tenth place, the Eagles' senior David Jamieson (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) missed out on all-conference honors due to tie-breaker procedures. Jamieson shot a 167 (85-82).
Newbury was awarded the 2008 NECC Team Sportsman
ship Award, which was voted upon by the seven coaches. The
Nighthawks are coached by third-year head coach Jonathan
Boyle. Newbury's top golfer was sophomore Pat
Welch (South Easton, Mass.), who finished 26th
with a 195 (104-91).
The NECC championship was hosted by Elms College at the Chicopee
Country Club, a par-71 course measuring 6,742 yards.
2008 New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Golf
Champions:
Springfield (324-322=646)
2008 NECC Golf Runners Up:
Mitchell (337-339=676)
3. Becker (350-333=683)
4. MIT (346-348=694)
5. Daniel Webster (365-339=704)
6. Elms (356-362=718)
7. Newbury (399-375=774)
2008 NECC Golfer of the Year: Greg Levings, Springfield,
SR., Averill Park, N.Y., Major: Physical Education (76-73=149)
Medalist*
2008 NECC Golf Rookie of the Year: Nick Swenson, MIT, FR., Yorktown, Va., Major: Biomedical Engineering (82-76=158) Tied for 3rd place overall
2008 NECC Golf Coach of the Year: Joe Eadie, Springfield College
2008 NECC Golf Team Sportsmanship Award: Newbury College Nighthawks
2008 NECC Golf 1st Team
All-Conference
Greg Levings, Springfield (SR) 76-73=149
Mike LaJoie, Springfield (SR) 76-78=154
Nick Swenson, MIT (FR) 82-76=158
Mike Lepore, Mitchell (FR) 77-81=158
Craig DeFranco, Springfield (SO) 81-80=161
2008 NECC Golf 2nd Team All-Conference
Matt Burke, Mitchell (FR) 83-81=164
Ben Malone, Becker (JR) 86-79=165
Ben Kwiatkowski, Elms (JR) 82-83=165
Andrew Sullivan, Elms (SO) 78-88=166
Ted Keith, MIT (SR) 80-87=167 
Full Results:
2008 NECC Golf Team Results
2008 NECC Golf Individual Results
2008 NECC Golf Stats
2008 NECC Golf Combo Results
2008 NECC Golf Top 20
To View Elms Coverage: http://athletics.elms.edu/sports/golf/2008-09/news/NECCfinal08
