The Fordham golf team got off to a roaring start right out of the gates in their 2023 fall season. The first outing for the Rams yielded exactly what head coach Gary Murphy needed from his youthful roster. Fordham has no seniors on their roster for the 2023-24 season, relying heavily on their experienced junior leaders, Jake Mrva and Chris Konefal. The first meet of the fall took place at Tumble Brook Country Club for the Hartford Hawks Invite in Bloomfield, Conn., an event Fordham finished 12th of 16 teams in just under a year ago. Mrva had one of the Rams’ lowest three-round scores in the Hartford Invite last year, carding a score of 220 over three rounds as a sophomore. Fast forward to this season, and Mrva put together a round for the Fordham record books.
Mrva finished his first round on Monday with a six-under score of 66, giving the junior the school record for lowest gross score in program history. Mrva split the front-and-back, shooting a 33 on both sides of the course to go along with a trio of birdies in his masterful round. The bogey-less day slotted Mrva with a substantial four-stroke cushion going into day two. Prior to Mrva’s program-best 66, the record was previously held by Jason del Rosso at the 2009 Dartmouth Invitational when he shot a 67. Aside from Mrva’s heroics, Fordham played exceptionally well as a team on day one.
The Rams were four-over in second and one shot back of the field leading Hartford. Freshman Tucker Silva and junior Bryan Ruland made their Rams debuts on Monday, both of which tallying scores of 75 including a fiery stretch of 15 straight pars from Silva. With more of a freshman-centric roster construction, the Rams saw immediate success from all of their newcomers including freshman Felix Luetke Meyring, who finished just four strokes over par with a 76.
Fordham was able to maintain their success on Tuesday as the Rams finished in second place as a team with Mrva taking home the individual title. Mrva tallied a 73 in his second day of action in Bloomfield, becoming the first Ram to finish atop a tournament field for the first time since the 2017 Ryan Lee Memorial when James Mongey came out victorious.
Mrva and Mongey were in close company all weekend as Mrva’s two-day stroke total of 139 is just two strokes more than the Fordham record of 137, a record also held by Mongey during his 2017 performance at the Bucknell Invitational.
Mrva’s five-under overall total gave the junior some breathing room as he cruised to one of the best outings in Fordham history. Fordham’s roster saw much success at the conclusion of day two as four other Rams, excluding Mrva, made the top-15 in standing. Bryan Ruland was a stroke better on day two, carding a 74 on Tuesday and placing him in the top-10 at ninth for the individual field. The Fordham freshman picked up right where they left off after their first collegiate rounds as Felix Luetke Meyring and Silva finished their outings tied for 12th place with a two-round score of 150 each.
Freshman AJ DePaolo and sophomore Mashu Nishi turned an excellent day two each with the underclassmen both shooting a pair of 76s. Rounding out the top-15 finishes for the Rams included junior Chris Konefal who tied Mrva’s second round score of 73 and finished in a tie for the 15th spot in individual field standing.
Fordham Golf has started on the best foot possible to begin their fall campaign with Mrva sliding into a leadership position on this roster seamlessly.
The Rams will return to the links this upcoming weekend for the Ryan Lee Memorial at Shuttle Meadow Country Club in Kensington, Conn.
