Mercer Goes 1-1 on President’s Day

Monday, February 17

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Weston Hills CC)

7:48 a.m.

Mercer University

FGCU

Photo by: Gerrit Van Genderen

2/17/2020 7:11:00 PM | Men's Golf

Martin Plukka went 2-0 on the day for the Bears

By: Stephen Waldman

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – The Mercer Men's Golf began its 2020 Spring schedule with a 1-1 showing at the President's Day Match Play, hosted by George Washington, at Weston Hills Country Club on Monday.

The Bears opened the day with a tough 4.5-1.5 setback against Florida Gulf Coast before rebounding with a convincing 5-1 victory over St. Bonaventure. Sophomore Martin Plukka led the team with a pair of wins on the day against Mark Kwinski Jr. of Florida Gulf Coast, 7-and-6, and St. Bonaventure's Zach Chaddock, 2-and-1.

Junior Tyler Copp was also undefeated on the day after he halved his first match against FGCU's Doug Smith before earning a 3-and-2 win over Christian Chapman of St. Bonaventure.

FGCU 4.5, Mercer 1.5
Tyler Copp halved Doug Smith
Martin Plukka def. Mark Kwinski Jr., 7&6
Tyler Carlson def. Jay Spivey, 3&1
Luke Farmer def. Ethan Werblo, 2Up
J.T. Barker def. Lino Galdin, 2&1
Brent Fredericksen def. Spencer Ball, 4&3

Mercer 5, St. Bonaventure 1
Spencer Ball def. Nolan Ditcher, 4&3
Lino Galdin def. Lance Sininger, 4&3
Ethan Werblo def. Andrew Lacongo, 3&1
Danny Gianniny def. Jay Spivey, 1Up
Martin Plukka def. Zach Chaddock, 2&1
Tyler Copp def. Christian Chapman, 3&2

COACH KAYDEN'S TAKE
"The guys played good today. We played good in the morning and shot under par as a team, but that's how match play goes. Sometimes you just don't get the breaks, and Florida Gulf Coast was just hot. They played really well. They made a bunch of birdies on us, and we made some too, just not quite enough to get the job done.

"We had a good bounce back in the afternoon. I'm very proud of the guys' effort in the afternoon as we won five-of-six matches against St. Bonaventure. It was a nice win that allowed us to have the guys playing well and feeling good going into the match tomorrow against George Washington.

"Martin had a good day today. I'm very proud of his efforts. He won both of his matches and really helped carry the team today. He's hitting the ball really well and his focus is really good."

Up Next
The Bears wrap up their first competition of the spring on Tuesday against host George Washington in the consolation championship. The match is scheduled to tee off at 7:44 a.m.

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