The Canisius College golf team will open the 2010-11 season
Sept. 5-6 at the Turning Stone Intercollegiate Tournament in Verona, N.Y. The two-day
tournament, which is hosted by the University of Missouri, is a 54-hole event
that will be played on the Kaluhyat Golf Club, a Robert Trent Jones, Jr.,
designed course that was recently ranked No. 3 among "American's Best New
Upscale Courses" by Golf Digest.
The Golden Griffins, under the direction of head coach Todd Hummel, return seven players from
last year's squad which finished fifth at the 2010 Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference Golf Championships in Orlando, Fla. Hummel is pleased with his
returning roster, and feels that this year's team presents him with a number of
choices when it comes time to decide who will represent the Blue and Gold on
the links.
"From top to bottom, this is as competitive a team we've had
in my seven years here," Hummel said. "Our guys know they're going to be
expected to compete each week and the competition among teammates will make us
better as we work toward our program's ultimate goal of winning a MAAC
Championship."
Buffalo native Michael
Knott returns as the lone senior on this year's roster, where he's joined
by juniors Scott Moser and Stephen Seeler and sophomores Ryan Bent, Michael Carrig, Mike Spiotta
and Joe Vogl. Knott is the most
experienced Griff on the 2010-11 roster, having played a total of 23 college
tournaments, where he boasts a top-five finish, four top-10 finishes and six
top-20s. Seeler has 15 college events under his belt, followed by Moser, a
two-sport athlete at the College, who has played in 10 tournaments.
The sophomore class made strides last season as freshmen, as
all four players saw time in the line-up. Bent, Carrig and Spiotta represented
the team at the MAAC Championships, with Spiotta ending that weekend as the
team's top finisher with his tie for third-place. Carrig was tied for third
after day one at the MAAC Championships and followed that effort by qualifying
for the 52nd Annual Porter Cup, making him the third Griff in the
last three years to earn a spot in a strong
field made up of the world's best collegiate and mid-amateur golfers. Bent tied
for 17th at the MAAC Championships last spring and went on to play
in a number of summer events, including the 2010 Trans-Mississippi Golf
Championship at the Denver Country Club.
"I'm happy that our guys went out and challenged themselves
by playing in some high-quality summer tournaments," Hummel said. "When you go
play in events like that, you are competing against experienced players, and
that will be helpful for our team as we play this fall in tournaments with
some quality players in the field."
After taking part in the Turning Stone event this weekend,
the Blue and Gold will travel to the Michigan State Invitational in East
Lansing, Mich., Sept. 11-12 before returning to New York state for the annual
Little Three Tournament at Niagara Falls Country Club on Tuesday, Sept. 14. The
fall slate will conclude Sept. 25-26, when the Griffs tee-it up at the Cornell
Invitational in Ithaca, N.Y.
"With such a strong returning group, the fall season will be
a chance for us to see some different line-ups as we move forward," Hummel
said. "Playing in quality events from the start will help us get ready for the
process of winning a MAAC title. We're going to play against teams that have
qualified for the NCAA Regionals in the past few years and playing against
stronger fields will give our guys a shot to prove some things in each round."
