Kitty Hawk, N.C. lived up to its reputation as one of the windiest places in the United States.

Binghamton University’s men’s golf team experienced the gusty conditions first hand at the Old Dominion Seascape Invitational this past Monday and Tuesday.

The Wright Brothers may not be taking off from the famous North Carolina Outer Banks town anymore, but the golf balls were flying as the Bearcats finished their fall schedule with a deceptively strong 11th place finish. Sophomore Jake Katz continued his breakout season, leading Binghamton with a sixth place individual performance out of the 75-person field.

Monday proved to be the better day for the Bearcats as they carved up the links-style course with an excellent 12 over par team score of 292. Katz led the way for Binghamton with a one under par round of 69. Sophomore Andrew Marler and senior J.J. Shearer also had solid rounds for the Bearcats, finishing with scores of 72 and 73, respectively. The Bearcats’ first day score left them tied for sixth place, only seven strokes behind leader Campbell University.

But the Seascape Golf Links showed its teeth on Tuesday, as wind conditions changed dramatically.

“The wind picked up, a front came through,” said head coach Bernie Herceg. “The wind was 30 to 35 miles per hour, but very gusty. It made it a tough day. The wind would change during their swings, making it difficult to use the right club for the approach shot.”

Almost the whole field struggled through the windy conditions, as only two teams out of the 15-team field improved on their first day scores. Binghamton finished the second day with a team score of 314, which gave them a tournament total of 606, good for 11th place. The 11th-place team finish was deceptively low considering the Bearcats missed the five-way tie for sixth place by only three strokes. Tournament host Old Dominion won the tournament with a team total of 579.

All the Bearcats’ individual scores rose from the first day, but Katz still managed the team’s low round of 75, giving him a tournament total of 144, tying him for sixth place individually.

“[Katz] started rough, but plodded his way back,” Herceg said.

Marler and Shearer shot a pair of 79s on the second day to finish with tournament scores of 151 and 122, respectively.

“Andrew was probably our most improved player. He was very consistent, with only one round over 80,” said Herceg, commenting on Marler’s season so far.

Juniors Patrick Donovan and Mike Corbo also scored for Binghamton shooting tournament totals of 159 and 172.

The Bearcats were victorious in the Colgate Invitational and Cornell Invitational. Corbo and Katz also took home medalist honors for Binghamton as Corbo won the Colgate Invitational and Katz won the Cornell Invitational. Katz also finished tied for first at the Philadelphia Big 5 Invitational and was named a member of the America Sky All-Conference Team.

The Old Dominion Seascape Invitational marks the end of the fall season for the men’s golf team. The team will pick up where they left off in the spring.