The Covenant men's golf team, led by another strong performance from sophomore James Van Nice, captured the Piedmont Fall Invitational on Tuesday as they posted a team score of 306 for a two-day total of 625, four shots better than the next closest team.
Van Nice not only led the the Scots, he led the entire field as he claimed the individual title with a 151 total, four strokes better than second place Zeier Fleming of Bob Jones. Van Nice was steady throughout both days as he consistently hit fairways and greens. The sophomore started the day with a birdie on his first hole followed by a pair of pars as he broke away from a six-way tie for first to run away with the individual crown.
After shooting a 319 in day one as a team, Covenant made adjustments to the course in the second round. Four Scots posted scores at or below 78 on Tuesday.
The biggest improvement came from Cameron Lewis. Lewis carded an 84 on Monday, but rebounded with a 76 in the final round for a 160 total score. Lewis' highlight of the tournament came on the 14th hole as he eagled the par-5 by draining a 60-foot putt.
Scott McKnight also posted a better score on Tuesday as he finished with a 77 after a 79 in round one. McKnight eagled the par-5 8th hole and finished off the day with a birdie on his 18th hole. McKnight was named to the all-tournament team as he finished in a tie for third.
Freshman Alan Craig carded a 78 for a two-day total of 159 to place him eighth on the leaderboard. Senior Nick Blauw posted an 81, while freshman Nate Haney, playing as an individual only, shot an 84.
Piedmont officially came in second with a total score of 645 while Bob Jones came in third with a 648.
Covenant will be back in action on Sept. 30-Oct. 1 at the Chick-fil-A Invitational hosted by Berry College.