Bucs finish fifth in 2012 fall opener  

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (Sept. 16, 2012) – The ETSU men’s golf team posted a fifth-place finish, while freshman Gudmundur Kristjansson (Reykjavik, Iceland) and sophomore Rhys Pugh (Pontypridd, Wales) both finished in the top-10 as the Bucs wrapped up play at the Tar Heel Intercollegiate on Sunday from UNC Finley Golf Course.

Kristjansson opened the day in a tie for fifth and ended the two-day tournament tied for sixth after registering a 2-under-par 214 (68-73-73), while Pugh – who was three shots off the lead entering the final round – finished ninth. Pugh had a birdie and bogey on the front nine, but bogeyed three of the final four holes to finish at 1-under 215 for the tournament. Kristjansson led the field by finishing the weekend with an 8-under on the four par-5 holes, while he was second with 15 birdies.  

North Carolina State’s Albin Choi never relinquished the lead as he won the individual championship with an 11-under 205.

Despite shooting a 1-over 289 in the final round, Duke still managed to win the team title as the 21st-ranked Blue Devils held off their rival and host Tar Heels by six shots. Duke finished at 8-under-par (285-282-289 –856) and North Carolina shot a 1-under on Sunday to tally a team score of 862 for the weekend.  

The Bucs finished with a team score of 877 and were four shots shy of a third-place finish as Charlotte ended with an 873 and N.C. State posted a score of 874. ETSU placed ahead of No. 34-ranked East Carolina (883), Boston College (885), and Notre Dame (887). Overall, the field was made up of 14 teams.

Meanwhile, freshman Adrian Meronk (Wroclaw, Poland) climbed up the leaderboard in the final round after posting a 1-over 73 on Sunday. Meronk – who tied for 27th with a final score of 221 – finished the back nine at 3-under-par after posting back-to-back birdies on No. 12 and No. 13 and also carded a four on the 560-yard, par-5 No. 17. The Buccaneer rookie entered the day tied for 35th.  

ETSU returns to action next weekend when the Blue and Gold travel to Franklin, Tenn. for the Mason Rudolph Invitational, beginning Friday, Sept. 21.

For more information on men’s golf, visit ETSUBucs.com.