NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Meghan Dikos finished third in the women's competition and Aiden Newman tied for third in the men's competition to lead Madonna University at the Saints Classic at The Warren GC at Notre Dame. The tournament featured separate two-round competitions for the women's and men's fields.
Dikos delivered the women's field's lowest second-round score, a 78, to finish at 166, 24 over par, among 35 golfers. After opening with an 88 to stand tied for 10th, Dikos cut 10 strokes and climbed seven places, finishing just two strokes off the winning total. The women's competition played at par 71 over 6,346 yards.
Holy Cross (IN)'s Olivia Manganiello set the opening-round pace with a field-low 77 and a four-stroke lead. Jill Daniels followed an opening 82 with another 82, climbing two places to claim the title at 164, 22 over par. Manganiello closed with an 88 to finish one stroke behind Daniels at 165.
Shaylin LeBlanc also made a substantial second-round move for Madonna, following a 91 with an 82 to climb eight places into a tie for 13th at 173, 31 over par. Grace Brees improved from 89 to 88 and finished 17th at 177, 35 over par. Abby Raben completed rounds of 117 and 119 to place 33rd at 236, 94 over par.
In the men's competition, Newman opened with a field-low 73 and an impressive eagle on hole 5, taking a one-stroke lead over Isaac Gessner. A closing 79 put Newman at 152, 10 over par, tied for third with Viterbo's Aaron Mork, who shot 77 and 75. The men's field had 63 finishers and three withdrawals, with play contested at par 71 over 6,744 yards.
Alex Hartman of Holy Cross (IN) surged from an opening 77 to a closing 72, gaining eight places to win the men's title at 149, 7 over par. Olivet Nazarene's Parker Boehne matched Hartman's field-low second-round 72 after opening with a 79. Boehne climbed 16 places to finish second at 151, two strokes behind Hartman and one ahead of Newman and Mork.
John Truxal opened with a 77 to tie for ninth before shooting 82, finishing tied for 21st at 159, 17 over par, for Madonna. Nolan Plasencia produced the Crusaders' lowest men's second round with a 76, improving eight strokes and climbing 18 places into a tie for 27th at 160, 18 over par. Enzo Carlisimo also trimmed eight strokes, following an 87 with a 79 to gain 11 places and tie for 39th at 166, 24 over par. Niklaus Vergel shot 84 and 85 to tie for 45th at 169, 27 over par.
Madonna golf will now be done for the fall season as they will gear up for the official spring season for NAIA and WHAC golf.
