Tournament Program
OLEAN, N.Y. – The St. Bonaventure golf team will be in search of its 15th team victory in 23 years – and second in a row – in its lone home event of year when the Leo Keenan Invitational tees off on Sunday from Bartlett Country Club.
Individually, junior Brian McKenna – fresh off a medalist finish at the Little Three Invitational which will allow him to play in the Porter Cup next summer – will also return to defend his medalist crown from last year's Keenan.
The Bonnies won the Keenan Invitational by three strokes over St. Francis (Pa.) last September, rebounding from a five-stroke deficit after the first round to pass the Terriers on the par-70 course.
The two top individual scorers wearing the Brown and White – McKenna and senior Kevin Lewis (tied for 9th) – return to Bartlett C.C. this year, while sophomore Scott Brady, an Olean native, will look to improve upon his tied for 14th finish from last season. Also returning this year are junior Greg Horvath and sophomore Chris Mackey.
While old faces return, there are a handful of new faces, beginning with the man at the helm of the program. John Powers – a 2010 Bowling Green State University graduate – replaced Brett Mucheck as the team's coach this past offseason. Joining him are freshmen Daniel Dunnigan, Brian Jurkiewicz and Pierce Terrance.
McKenna, a Rochester native, defeated Cornell's Matthew Jaye by one stroke to win the individual crown at the Keenan invite last year. After a 2-over 72 on day one, he rebounded with a 3-under 67 on the final day to win the event.
McKenna picked up the first win of his junior campaign this past Tuesday at the Little Three Invitational at Niagara Falls Country Club in Lewiston, N.Y. He held off Canisius's Michael Carrig by one stroke to take the individual crown, earning him an automatic bid to the 2012 Porter Cup. The Porter Cup, held annually at Niagara Falls C.C, is widely considered to be one of the top amateur events in the world, boasting greats such as Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Ben Crenshaw among past participants.
Eleven teams will compete in the Leo Keenan Invitational this year, including 2010 runner-up St. Francis (Pa.), Little Three rival Niagara and fellow Atlantic 10 school/tournament newcomer La Salle. Humber College, Cornell, Drexel, Fairmont State, Long Island and Ottawa also return from last season. Also new to the Keenan Invitational this season is Robert Morris.
Saint Francis (Pa.) returns a core group of golfers, including Jeremy Foran who finished in a tie for sixth last season, seven shots behind the champion McKenna. The Red Flash are coming off a third-place finish at the competitive, 12-team Navy Fall Classic.
While Robert Morris is new to the invite this year, the Colonials are expected to present a formidable presence as they return a strong nucleus from a team which finished second at last year's NEC Championships. RMU was paced last season by the now-graduated C.G. Mercatoris, who finished in 31st place at the NCAA Colorado Regional in the opening foray of the NCAA Championship event.
Other top individual returners from last year's Keenan invite include Lewis (tied for ninth), Long Island's Josh Waters (tied for 11th) and Drexel's Ben Feld (tied for 14th).
The 36-hole tournament begins with tee times Sunday morning, followed by a shotgun start on Monday.
