Hawerchuk Retains Lead at NEC Championships, Blue Devils Vault into Third

Central Connecticut sophomore Eric Hawerchuk maintained his spot atop the NEC Men's Golf Championships leaderboard through two days. Hawerchuk shot a second round 69 on the par 72, 6,937 yard International Course at ChampionsGate Golf Club, putting him at seven under 137 heading into tomorrow's final round action. He is tied with Long Island senior Greg Nicolson. As a team, the Blue Devils jumped from a tie for sixth into sole possession of third with a Saturday-low 293. At 599, they are seven strokes behind Sacred Heart, which followed an opening round 295 with a 297. Long Island, which held the day one lead, is in second at 595 (292-303).

CCSU freshman Tucker Dooley stayed in the top-15 with a second round 75. His two-day 151 total has him in a tie for 14th. Senior Tim Buczak shaved six strokes off his opening round 79 to place him at 17th with a 152. Sophomores Sam Pelletier (83-78=161) and Tom Ursa (86-76=162) round out the Blue Devil squad.

Monmouth and St. Francis (PA) follow Central Connecticut to complete the top five. Monmouth (302-304) is 606, two shots in front of SFPA (299-309). Robert Morris, which has shot 306-304 is sixth at 610. Mount St. Mary's sits seventh in the standings. The Mount has posted 305-307 for a 612. Fairleigh Dickinson (313-300=613), Quinnipiac (323-312=635), Wagner (337-341=678) and St. Francis (NY) (341-344=685) close out the field.

St. Francis (PA) junior Mike Magalski and Robert Morris sophomore C.G. Mercatoris are four strokes off the pace set by Hawerchuk and Nicholson. Magalski has shot 69-72, while Mercatoris has posted 68-73.

Hawerchuk's two-day score is the second best on the league's 36-hole championship performance list.

Final round play is slated to start tomorrow, Sunday, May 3, at 8 a.m.