WOOSTER, Ohio — The Wittenberg Tigers showed off their tremendous depth in the College of Wooster's Nye Intercollegiate, putting four players in the top 10 en route to a first-place finish and the lead after Round 1 of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Championship Series.
Not only did four players finish in the top 10 individually, but two players — both freshmen — claimed the top two spots in the final standings. For Ben Hogenkamp (Minster, Ohio/Minster), it was his second straight first-place finish, following up on a championship won at DePauw's Katman Klassic April 10. For David Wetterich (Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle), his second-place finish marked his finest collegiate performance.
It all added up to a strong team total of 602 over the two soggy days on the par-72, 6,545-yard Wooster Country Club course. The Tigers carded rounds of 299 and 303 to take a 13-shot lead over Ohio Wesleyan into the second NCAC Championship Series hosted by Hiram April 30 and May 1.
The series winner earns the NCAC's automatic berth in the 2011 NCAA Division III Tournament, scheduled for May 10-13 at Grandover Resort in Greensboro, NC. Wittenberg placed sixth in last year's national championship, the second-best finish in program history.
Hogenkamp shot matching rounds of 73 to finish just two-over-par and win the tournament by a whopping three strokes. Wetterich was next, following up his opening-round 72 with a 77 to finish with a 149, one ahead of Ohio Wesleyan's Nate Fridley.
Sophomore Craig Osterbrock (Wilmington, Ohio/Wilmington) wasn't far behind, placing seventh with a two-day total of 153, and junior Jordan Millice (Cable, Ohio/Triad) rounded out the Tigers' scorers with a 10-over-par 154, good for ninth place.
Also of note, junior Ricky Boerner (Hilliard, Ohio/Watterson) finished 15th after rounds of 80 and 78.