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Nic Zoretic won the individual title to lead the United States Merchant Marine Academy golf team to an eighth-place finish of ten teams at the Mulekicker Fall Classic on Tuesday afternoon in West Point, N.Y. Zoretic, Adelphi’s Mauricio Saavedra and Army’s Joey Cave all shot a 74 and advanced to a sudden death playoff in which Zoretic emerged as the champion after four holes.

 

On the first playoff hole, Zoretic and Cave each made a birdie while Saavedra was eliminated by making a par. Zoretic and Cave each made par on the second and third holes. On the fourth playoff hole, Zoretic made a birdie to win the title.

 

“It was a good head-to-head matchup,” explained Zoretic on the playoff. “I knew that with my entire team behind me that I was going to grind it out and win.”

 

James Smith, the only plebe on the squad, shot an 82 which was good for second on the team and tied for 26th overall.

 

“It was a good round for our plebe,” said Zoretic on Smith. “We expect many great things from him in the coming years.”

 

Rounding out the scoring for USMMA were Nicholas Klein (T-40th, 87), James McCollum (54th, 102) and Benjamin Garlock (55th, 108).

 

The Mariners will conclude their fall season on Oct. 11 against St. Joseph’s.

1. Adelphi                        303

2. Nassau CC                   306

3. Fairleigh Dickinson     312

4. Monmouth                   313

5. Dominican                   330

6. Nyack                          337

7. St. Peter’s                    341

9. St. Joseph’s (NY)        346

10. Farmingdale State     358

 

1. Nic Zoretic                              74

T-26. James Smith                       82

T-40. Nicholas Klein                   87

54. James McCollum                   102

55. Benjamin Garlock                  108