Ball was wrong, butStinson's play is right

College notebook

Date published: 9/27/2006

By KURT NICOLL

TOO MANY PLAYERS and misplaced shots can result in the most unfortunate consequences, even for the most experienced of golfers.

Sophomore Eric Stinson (Spotsylvania County) of the U.S. Naval Academy overcame a case of mistaken ball identity to record a sixth-place finish in Monday's Rehoboth Beach (Dela.) Invitational tournament.

On his opening drive, Stinson knocked the ball into the right rough and, after finding a new Titleist ball that he assumed was his, proceeded with his second shot. Reaching the green, the Woodberry Forest School graduate realized his mistake, forcing him to go back to play his original shot--with a two-stroke penalty.

Stinson regrouped to shoot a 2-over-par 144, leading the Midshipmen to a three-way tie for fourth place with Army and the Navy's gold team.

"It was superb effort after carding a triple-bogey on the first hole," Navy head coach Pat Owen said. "[The mistake] can happen to anybody. I happened to see him two holes later and he was very upbeat about his play."

With two teams, the competition for starting berths on the Navy team is quite intense with 18 eligible players. Other college teams have similar numbers: George Washington's A and B teams posted a 1-2 finish in the 36-hole event.

After splitting time between the two squads his rookie season, Stinson has clearly staked a claim to one of the first team's starting six spots.

"Eric's game has improved considerably," Owen commented following Stinson's second career top-10 finish. "He's more consistent in his ball placement and he's added distance through flexibility and strength exercise. And his course management has improved."

Up next is a trip to West Point for the annual Army-Navy showdown. Navy had a six-match win streak in the series, but Army has won the past two years.

Other than wanting her to become a little more vocal, the Catholic University field hockey team has nothing but positive things to say about the play of freshman defender Julie Ehrmann (Brooke Point).

Going into yesterday's game against Mary Washington, Ehrmann had started all seven games for the Cardinals (4-3, 1-0) and received a game ball for her stellar work in the season-opening 2-0 victory over Virginia Wesleyan.

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Date published: 9/27/2006